Blame it on Bad Luck
by Beatz
Summary: During a time when teammates can die at anytime, a young Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru are thrown into a problem when feelings enter a dangerous world. [Tsunade&Jiraiya]
1. Reluctant Confession

**DISCLAIMER: **I DON'T OWN NARUTO. Yet this loveable and unique story is all mine.

After my TMM story concludes probably in the next two weeks than this story will become my main focus now that school is ending, and I'll have more time.

This is a story involved Jiraiya and Tsunade, but it does not take place when the show does. Instead I decided to do something different, the story takes place during their days as Team Sarutobi 3rd Hokage when they are teenagers. It will include Orochimaru being not psychotic just yet. They are all chuunin at the time and they are obviously still a team. If it's not exactly accurate sorry but I'm trying and I wanted to do it when they were younger and innocent.

Enjoy Chapter one. :D!

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**Blame it on Bad Luck**

**Chapter One:** Reluctant Confession

Perhaps admitting is the first step into having an effective relationship. Sexual tension especially among friends, teammates, and co-workers can only lead to quarrels and even more fear to admitting one's feelings. Of course when someone is a ninja and romantically interested in another teammate there's always the scenario in your mind that they may never see them again or even that the person could die. This would sway one person's mind to confessing feelings before it is too late, just so they could have the chance. On the other hand, unrequited love on a team could create either awkwardness or hard feelings between teammates. Maybe all anyone needs on the subject of love and confessing someone's feelings is a teacher. 

The tinkling of bells was the loudest noise heard in the training grounds of the village. The grounds consisted of a forest, a clearing, three posts, and the ominous tablet containing all of the ninja who had fallen in battle. Currently four ninja were occupying the clearing; three of them were training while one was testing their abilities to successfully obtain the bells from him. A thin, pale boy with raven hair was standing quietly next to a grinning, blond haired girl who was protectively clutching a bell in her hand while looking at their teacher with adoring eyes.

The last of the four of them was tied to a post with an unpleasant look on his face. The white haired boy glared with jealousy at Tsunade who was waving her bell maliciously in front of his eyes. Orochimaru stood on the side of her with the same indifferent look on his face holding his bell like it was nothing more than a piece of metal with a string attatched. The bell represented more. It showed how capable they were as ninjas and Jiraiya had failed to get one.

"You flat-chested hag," he began to yell, his white hair blowing in his face, "How the hell did you get a bell?!"

"Jealous much?" she commented back dangling the bell in front of his face. "I guess this test proves that Orochimaru and I are the better ninjas while you're nothing more than a joke."

"I blame it on bad luck!"

"Whatever," Tsunade mumbled placing her hands on her hips with much attitude radiating out of her body.

Within moments she was latched protectively onto Sarutobi-sensei's arm keeping a flirtatious smile on her face. Ever since they had become a team after graduating from the academy, Tsunade had always had some sort of attraction towards Sarutobi-sensei. From the first moment her big brown eyes fell upon him at the training grounds her eyes filled with some sort of desire to make him hers. There were her constant attempts to impress him by bringing down Jiraiya in some way, making him appear to be the inferior ninja. One day he could've had swore that he noticed her bra was stuffed with probably socks. Of course if he had ever addressed her on the issue of anything concerning her unmentionables she would concentrate so much chakra into her hand that when she punched him, he would no longer be breathing.

Instead of contemplating about his jutsus sometimes he found himself staring at her wondering what she saw in their sensei instead of him. There was obviously a certain sex appeal because he was older, rugged, and a more experienced ninja, but he was married and expecting children soon. Older men were way too experienced for her anyways and they wouldn't want some flat chested hag. The fact was that he was in his late twenties and they were teenagers, Tsunade should've been giving those adoring eyes to one of them instead of their own teacher. Well… that's at least what Jiraiya wanted to happen. Of course admitting that to Tsunade would never amount to anything. They were teammates. Getting involved romantically or even getting attatched as good friends would only amount to weakness.

"Come on Sarutobi-sensei," she cooed leading him away from Jiraiya and Orochimaru. "Let's go get some Ramen to celebrate our latest accomplishment of being good enough to gain the bells."

It wasn't much of an accomplishment to gain the bells now that they had all passed the chuunin exams with flying colors. The only reason Sarutobi-sensei made them retake the bell test was to reassess their skills after passing the exam. The first time they had all taken the test, they all had done pretty poorly. Orochimaru was the most motivated out of the three of them since Tsunade was at the age when she didn't realize being a ninja wasn't for the boys while Jiraiya only used many jutsus for jokes. They had all fallen for the tricks that every jounin was highly skilled in, but now they were all more experienced. Everything was different from the first time except for the outcome. Jiraiya always ended up on the post.

Tsunade had now exited with Sarutobi-sensei leaving Jiraiya still attatched to the wooden post next to a silent Orochimaru. Orochimaru was the only person he really considered to be a close friend. Even though he was silent almost all the time with a very serene and kind look on his face, he was a highly skilled ninja with powerful drive and enhanced skill for his age. Sarutobi-sensei always told Jiraiya to be more like him then he would be a truly glorious ninja. Orochimaru told him in confidence one night that he wanted to become Hokage and be known as one of the greatest ninjas who mastered every jutsu. Before that night, Jiraiya had only seen Orochimaru as a rival and nothing more. After that he began to notice a different side where he was vulnerable and ready to show his dreams but only to a selected few. The immaturity that Jiraiya was known for stopped for that night as he realized that he did not want to be a ninja just like Orochimaru. Instead he wanted to be remembered for something different. That was the night when Jiraiya realized he wanted to be a unique ninja and create his own style. Maybe with Orochimaru on his side, they could accomplish their goals together.

Obviously the relationship between Jiraiya and Tsunade was different. The only person she seemed to ever confide in was Sarutobi-sensei. Her relationship with Orochimaru was just average, nothing special they shared a few good laughs and had each other's backs if they ever needed anything but there was nothing more there.

Over the years since they had all become a team, Jiraiya quietly waited and watched from a distance. Waiting for something… anything to happen with Tsunade. His personality would never allow him to become close to her without possibly insulting her in some manner. Feelings were not his forte.

"Why…" Orochimaru began to speak after sitting in silence for a couple of moments, "don't you just tell her?"

"What?" Confusion was what was filling Jiraiya's mind at that moment. "I would never like that stuck-up flat chested brat!"

Had he really been that obvious? Maybe bickering was a sign of affection in Orochimaru's sick and twisted world, or maybe in the real world their constant bickering really did confide some sort of hidden meaning on the inside.

"I perhaps am wrong, but I can generally read people well," Orochimaru fidgeted for a moment. "What I am trying to say is that if you wish to tell her than you may wish to do it soon since you never know what can happen during our lives as ninja. I would… do that if I was in your situation."

Orochimaru wandered behind Jiraiya and began untying him from the post he was tied to being silent as usual. Even when he was silent Jiraiya understood exactly what he was trying to say; his wisdom did surpass his years. Jiraiya hit the ground with a thump and crossed his arms immediately giving Orochimaru a discontent glance. All he did was shrug and began to walk away. The wind blew his hair in his face as he looked up at the setting sun. Maybe it was time to tell her. It had been a couple of years and maybe the immaturity act was something he was beginning to outgrow. Maybe it was time for him to settle down. They were sixteen, they lived short lives.

In the spur of the moment, he took off running; his destination was the home that belonged to Tsunade.

Peering above the bush, Jiraiya glanced above him to see a roof that would provide the perfect view of Tsunade's window; at least he hoped it was her window. Sometimes he was just bad at figuring out whose house is whose. One day he thought he was peeping into the bathroom of a very attractive ninja by the name of Lyra only to find himself peering into the bathroom of Orochimaru. From that day on, he vowed to keep his eyes above the waist when looking at Orochimaru, but he most say… whoever gets involved with the quiet oddball will be a very happy person.

Placing his hands together and focusing his chakra he transported himself onto the rooftop overlooking Tsunade's window. He fell backwards and waited patiently. What approach he was going for was the Romeo and Juliet approach. Maybe if he romantically appeared below or at her window she would overlook his obviously young and immature behavior to favor him over Sarutobi-sensei. Of course he had only come up with a plan up until he was below her window. What he was going to actually say to her wasn't fully planned out yet. A figure appeared at the window but he couldn't make the person out fully yet. The curtains concealed their figure.

"Jiraiya," a familiar, slightly annoyed male voice bellowed him behind him.

Sarutobi-sensei loomed over Jiraiya with his arms crossed in a fashion that gave out the feeling of disappointment. The only times he had ever seen his sensei with that look on his face before was when he took all the toads from the academy and feared them into the wild. When Sarutobi-sensei asked why he had freed all of the toads, Jiraiya keenly answered that they needed to be liberated.

"Sen-sen-sensei!" he stammered pushing back onto the edge of the rooftop. "What are you doing here?!"

"I always come here to think," Sarutobi answered calmly taking a seat next to Jiraiya on the edge of the rooftop. "It helps me clear my head before I go home to my family. I believe the larger question is why you are up here."

Jiraiya pulled his legs to his chest, clutching them with a reluctant look on his face, "I was just going to pull a prank on that flat-chested hag! She totally deserves it for screwing me over today."

The statement wasn't completely false. If it wasn't for Tsunade than Jiraiya would've had a bell instead of her. A bell lay keenly on the ground in front of him after he had used a massive cloning jutsu forcing one of the bells off of Sarutobi-sensei's belt loop. It hit the ground with a small clink while it glimmered in the sunlight. A victorious feeling overcame Jiraiya as he sprinted towards his newly acquired bell giving him immunity from the post for the first time. Little did he know what was lurking in the bushes. A clear string obstructed his direct path causing him to fall flat on his face while tripping a booby trap set up by the clever Tsunade. A log flew down from a nearby tree knocking the already down Jiraiya into a tree with a thud. The world around him was spinning.

When he came to he saw a blond haired figure holding a bell protectively in her hand while she stuck her tongue out at him in a mocking way. He was tied to the post.

"A bit of a sore loser, aren't you?" Sarutobi-sensei questioned as the shadowy figure behind the curtain finally emerged.

With a swift motion the shadow pushed back the yellow curtains and opened up a window in the room below them. Tsunade's blond head poked out from the window and glanced below her window before retreating back inside. Her hair was down and all she was wearing was a yellow towel wrapped around her small framed body. An unwanted blush formed on Jiraiya's face as he tried to look everywhere else but in her window. It wasn't his first time seeing a female in the buff, but with Tsunade it felt different and like he shouldn't be studying her so closely. It was so embarrassing that he could even feel his white hair beginning to blush. Sarutobi-sensei was looking down at her window with a cheerful smile on his smug face. Finally Jiraiya realized why this was his spot to come and think everyday.

"Gosh, Sarutobi-sensei, you're a perv," Jiraiya mumbled loosing all respect he had for his own teacher.

"Shut up you little toad, she'll hear us!" Sarutobi responded placing his hand over Jiraiya's mouth to silence him. This only caused Jiraiya to make more noises, lick his hand, struggle, and attempt to bite him.

Tsunade stopped moving in the bathroom for a moment turning around and glancing out of the window before disappearing.

"Where did she go," Jiraiya muffled through Sarutobi's hands while they both glanced around for a couple of moments.

A puff of smoke appeared behind them within an instant revealing a very unhappy looking Tsunade only wearing a yellow bath towel with her hair down. Her angry eyes instantly found Jiraiya skipping over Sarutobi-sensei in a forgiving manner.

"Heh, flat-chesty, this isn't what it looks like," he stammered while placing his hands in front of him and backing up away from her slowly.

"Thanks Sarutobi-sensei for discovering him," Tsunade began as she clenched her fist focusing chakra into it, "You perv!"

With those final words a chakra focused punch sailed towards Jiraiya slammed into his cheek. All he could remember was falling off of the side of roof after loosing his balance. While he was falling Tsunade peered over the edge of the roof watching him careen towards the ground until he landed in a pool of water below. Maybe he shouldn't have followed Orochimaru's advice.

_**To Be Continued...**_

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This is where I put my input and opinion on how this chapter came out. Well... the chapter is long because I wanted to set the mood for upcoming chapters but I sort of fear that maybe the ending seems slightly rushed, but oh well. Orochimaru may have a love interest... hmmm... I'm toying with the idea but he'll appear again in the future. 

Well, that's pretty much it for chapter one, hopefully chapter two will be up soon so R&R please. :D! Thanks for reading.


	2. Proper Sleeping Arrangements

**DISCLAIMER: **I DO NOT OWN NARUTO. Too bad.

**Chapter Two: Reluctant & Pillows**

Quickly jumping into a situation on a whim had never seriously worked out for Jiraiya. Now he was caught in a predicament based off the fact he was never good with feelings let alone expressing them. Orochimaru seemed more like the sensitive and caring type who would be better with those sorts of issues which was probably why he offered Jiraiya the advice in the first place. Confessing his somewhat weird feelings for Tsunade was becoming difficult. The fact he was lurking on a rooftop peering into the window of her bathroom gave the wrong impression of what he was trying to do. If he was ever to involve himself with her, he would eventually get to sneak a peek, but that would be a perk in the future. 

Coming back from a state of unconsciousness brought upon by Tsunade's fist and the impact of the pool of water beneath him was one of the most painful experiences of his life. His head was pounding and his cheek was swollen to the size of an orange; mouth, cheeks, teeth, body, ego, everything that he had hurt in the worse way.

A light was above him causing him to squint his eyes and wonder where he was. Maybe Tsunade had killed him. There were worse ways to die than at the hands of an empowered female… not many. Orochimaru would deliver his eulogy pointing out every strength and quirk he had, of course mentioning his dashing good looks. Sarutobi-sensei would carry his urn, and then drop it when he saw a woman there with her blouse partially unbuttoned. What a slightly pathetic display his funeral would be. There would be too much chaos for anyone to miss him and mourn over his tragic passing at the hands of a flat-chested psycho.

Now he was in his own personal heaven waiting for the rest of eternity while he sat on clouds and ate bon-bons with ramen. Not at the same time, that would be disgusting.

"Ugh," escaped his mouth when he tried to move his arms only to feel sore and immobile.

A face appeared over his. It was blurry at first and seemed calm, serene, friendly, and peaceful. The first thought that came to his mind was some beautiful lady he would be able to spend the rest of his eternity with. Of course Sarutobi-sensei had molded his mind into believing many women were beautiful when they had assets. Finally the fact came into focus and his face cringed at the site of unhappy women glaring down at him.

"Oh shit," he moaned making a sour face at the one above him, "not only am I dead, but I must be in hell."

Tsunade's eyes narrowed in discontent pulling up her left arm in preparation for another punch to the face. This time he wasn't going to fall for her attack so easily. A coy smile spread across his face as he pushed off of the ground using his elbows and pinned Tsunade to the floor using her shoulders. All these actions happened before she could blink let alone think. The entire spring into action took her completely off guard. Usually she saw Jiraiya as the type of person who would never think of using that tactic. Jiraiya always came off to her as a lazy, immature boy who wanted nothing more than to play ninja to prove how adult he was.

There seemed to be no change in the way he was since the day they had met when they were younger. In the academy he would always play pranks on the teachers. Everyone knew that he would graduate because he excelled at jutsus that no one else could dream of mastering. The talent he possessed seemed to be a waste since all he ever cared about was having fun in immature ways. When Tsunade first addressed how immature Jiraiya was in the middle of class that was the day he decided to use her as a target for his pranks. All that she would be to him was a joke and someone to get a couple of laughs over.

The day when they learned they would be teammates Tsunade almost felt herself relieved, though she would never admit it, now she would be seen as the shining star within the group even alongside a prodigy such as Orochimaru. Jiraiya would always be the loser in the group and she would excel at everything. This wasn't the case. Instead of him staying the loser all he did was ever grow and become stronger while she struggled to keep up with his pace of excelling. Instead of giving up or admitting that he was the better ninja, she claimed him to be her rival.

"Gotcha," were the words that snapped Tsunade back into reality where she was pinned down by the shoulders with a surprised look on her face.

A smirking Jiraiya was peering down at her feeling triumphant. For a few brief moments, they sat there awkwardly in that position just staring at each other until something happened. Unfortunately that something was Tsunade's robe sliding down her shoulder to reveal a little skin. Jiraiya stared blankly at the robe that just slid off of her shoulder. It was an impulse and his nature; he couldn't help but stare waiting for it to slip down more until he realized something.

Instantly he broke away from her careening across the room into a corner feeling exposed, "Where the hell are my clothes, you flat-chested hag?!"

Instead of being in his normal attire he was stuck in one of the most feminine looking robes he had ever laid his eyes on. It was a pink and purple flowered robe that only went down to about his mid-thigh revealing his obviously unshaven and masculine legs. He sat properly and kept pulling down the robe to preserve what little of his dignity he had left.

"Stop calling me that, you perv," Tsunade yelled as she pulled up the shoulder of her robe. "I had to hang them out to dry since you fell into the pull after you clumsily fell off of my roof. Serves you right I suppose since you were peeping and corrupting Sarutobi-sensei. And don't act so exposed and innocent; I left you in your damn flowery boxers!"

"I wasn't corrupting him. Man, you think he's just _so_ perfect. I'm guessing your type of guy is old and married, huh, Tsunade?"

Jiraiya folded his legs and began to take in his surroundings while he left Tsunade speechless and gawking at him after his last remarks. Maybe he shouldn't have said those words to her. Maybe he should have just asked her flat out why she liked their sensei, but that wasn't something he would normally do.

Now there was an awkward silence between them.

Red was the color of Tsunade's current face as she glared out of the window away from him obviously insulted by his last comments. Why is it everytime he opened his mouth he insulted her in some way?

The intoxicating smell of cotton candy filled his senses. He had been so busy flirting horribly with Tsunade and arguing with her that he realized he had no idea where the heck he was. Judging by the smell of cotton candy and the color of the room, Jiraiya deduced that he was indeed in Tsunade's bedroom. Now his face was turning an involuntary shade of red that spread from cheek to cheek. They were both in robes and in her bedroom. This was the sort of situation Jiraiya had always dreamed of being in. Of course he never imagined himself with his so-called rival. The girl was a psycho with a short temper and her room was pink.

Pink was not the color that Jiraiya imagined would ever fit Tsunade. Not only that the psycho had pink sheets and curtains to add to the décor. Books were scattered all across the floor, some of them were romance and some of them were about training alongside chakra control. Beside her bed was a picture. Not just any picture but the picture of their team. Jiraiya was sticking his tongue out in the picture while Tsunade was protectively clutching onto Sarutobi-sensei's arm. Orochimaru stood alongside Jiraiya giving a genuinely happy smile to be apart of the slightly deranged squad. Smiling at the sight of the picture was something Jiraiya couldn't help but do, but now he had to break the silence between him and Tsunade.

"So… you don't seem like the pink type," Jiraiya commented glancing over at Tsunade.

Perking up she smiled somewhat at his remark, "Well it proves how much of a mystery I am to you. I'm not an open book, unlike you, all you care about is getting action and peeping at women in their bathhouses."

"I believe you're concerning me with our pervert sensei. I'm totally innocent."

"Gimme a break, if you're innocent than Orochimaru's gay and a child molester!"

Another awkward silence fell over both of them. Maybe Jiraiya had to rethink this entire thing with Tsunade. The girl was a complete psycho and obviously didn't enjoy his company all too much. Judging by how dark it was, he realized that it was probably too late to return to the apartment that the village had supplied him with. Being without a mother or father, Jiraiya was put up in a place supplied by the village but was pretty much maintained with the help of Sarutobi-sensei.

"Well," Tsunade cooed as she stretched by the windowsill and slipped onto the top of her bed, "we have a B-Rank mission tomorrow and since you never take anything seriously, I'll have to handle it so I'm going to bed. You can just head home, okay?"

The light was shut off and only the light from the half-full moon shone through the window. Jiraiya sat cross legged on the floor looking at Tsunade on the bed. Not having a family was his only soft spot and the primary reason for why he often pushed people away or acting outwardly like he did. Maybe it was time Tsunade fully realized that he didn't really have anything place to go home to. Staying at her place maybe out of the question… or at least in her room, but maybe she had some other room he could sleep in. Actually he would be happy just sleeping on the floor.

"I… umm… don't have any place to go," he finally admitted sheepishly.

Most of the time when he didn't make it home by curfew he would stay out by the ponds. Bodies of water always made him comfortable and less isolated. The croaking of the toads and frogs was somewhat comforting. Nature was something he always felt comfortable around. If he could he could stumble around in the dark for hours on end trying to locate his key that he cleverly hid somewhere around, but that seemed like too much of a struggle. That's why he set a curfew so he could locate his key in the daylight without any problem.

"Oh," there was some rustling coming from where Tsunade was sleeping. "Well… I suppose you could… umm… stay here. Just keep it down! I know how freakin' noisy you are and my parents would have a fit if they found out!"

A pillow became airborne and slammed Jiraiya in the face. It reeked of the smell of girl and Tsunade's shampoo. Why do girls always have to smell like coconuts or fruit from head-to-toe? Now he was trying to figure out what he was supposed to do with the singular pillow. Tsunade was sitting on the bed with her legs crossed watching every move he was making her like a hawk. Now he was feeling nervous like any moment she would swoop down and harm him physically for something that he didn't intend on doing on purpose.

"C'mon, I wanna go to bed and you're supposed to sleep at the end of my bed by my lovely little feet. We're on the same team and if you didn't get any sleep, and got us all killed tomorrow it would be technically my fault. Now come on."

"Uh… thanks, Tsunade," he mumbled in response wandering over to where she was sitting while clutching the pillow in his hands.

For a moment, he hovered over where she was sitting on her bed before getting the guts to kneel down beside her even if it wouldn't last long. There was a look of uncertainty on her face like she wasn't expecting any of this out of him or that his intentions were not truly noble. His cheeks reluctantly burned with a red blush across his nose that was only brought out by his white hair. Quickly he gave her a quick peck on forehead then retreated to the bottom of her bed huddling underneath the covers like nothing had happened.

"I'm not some dog," he whined trying to pull more of the blankets up to his chin, "I don't belong on the goddamn edge of your bed near your overly moisturized feet!"

"Whatever! Just go to bed before you get kicked outta it!"

Tsunade quickly pulled the covers over her face to prevent anyone from seeing the involuntary red tint creeping across her face. Neither of them wanted to acknowledge what had just occurred instead they both wanted to go on with their way of dancing around the problem that was facing them.

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Umm... so there's the end of Chapter Two. :D!

Thanks to everyone who reads/reviews, and alerts. I love you all for helping in the writing process knowing I'm not doing this for nothing.

Lemme see, it's kind of hard to get them together without completely going out of character on them so this may take some canoodling on both sides. So next chapter be ready for the extra awesome mission that will pull these two out of the awkward phase they are in. Woo!

Review and such please :3


	3. Flashbacks with Jugs

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own Naruto. Thank you for understanding.

**Chapter Three: Flashbacks with Jugs**

The morning came quickly leaving Jiraiya drooling on Tsunade's pillow with his mouth wide open. It was a very unattractive view of him and Tsunade did her best not to stare at how wide his mouth was when she woke up to him at her side. Somehow during the middle of the night he inched his way from the bottom of the bed to next to her. Obviously he did it subconsciously because he wasn't the type to be rattled or woken up easily. When she had first woken up to the sight of him it, she rolled over groggily. First calmly ignoring it and not fully awake to realize he was sleeping right there snoring like a chainsaw. Finally it came to her a couple of moments later and she hit the wall.

There was an inside conflict on whether she should push him off of the bed as punishment for creeping up beside or leaving him to sleep in. A rustling sound came from the bed as Jiraiya switched to his side to sleep on with a content smile on his face. Tsunade kept watching him with curious eyes. There were so many questions raised by what had happened the previous night like if he had a family. Her memory flashed back to when he said he didn't have a home to go back to. Come to think of it, she couldn't recall one time that he had ever brought up his home life. Sarutobi-sensei and Orochimaru seemed like the closest thing that he had to family, but she was making that difficult since she tried to spend as much time with Sarutobi-sensei as possible.

Tsunade pulled her robe over herself then taking her leave of her bedroom. When entering her bathroom she glanced at her reflection to see a messed up puff of a hair jutting out from all directions. Today was yet another mission, but this mission would be different. Now they were chuunin and no longer at the bottom of the barrel. Older and experienced, they would now leave behind the unwanted D-Rank and C-Rank missions to achieve a higher status within the ninja world. Officially she wasn't a little kid anymore.

If she remembered correctly today they would start with an escort mission. There had to be some danger to the mission because they wanted to only use the most experienced of the teams to escort who she would have guessed as royalty. A smile crept across her face as she remembered everyone's reactions to their first higher ranked mission. Jiraiya was jumping for joy and even Orochimaru seemed to crack a small smile.

"Perfect," she told herself in the mirror. Now her hair was halfway up and brushed, it looked best that way and she believed it was Sarutobi-sensei's favorite hair style.

When she had graduated from the Academy and first met Sarutobi-sensei alongside Orochimaru and Jiraiya her hair was frizzy and wild. This changed when she first laid her eyes upon her newfound sensei knowing it was time for a new look. Everyday she would attempt a new hairstyle trying to learn everything she could from the more sultry women on the streets. She would sit on the sidewalks watching women stand on street corners in some of the most popular places in town just to see the hairstyles that the older men adored. One woman actually approached her to ask her why she was always hanging around.

"I need a new hairstyle to impress a certain male friend of mine, and I feel that you are the best person to teach to me to entrance men." Tsunade's confidence was shining through her huge smile directed towards the women in high heels.

A cigarette stained with lipstick was nestled in between the index and ring fingers of the women. "Interesting…"

Smoke leaked through the tip of the cigarette, but the pensive look on the women's face wasn't what Tsunade was taking in. Instead she examined the clothes adorning the women's body and being twelve she was totally mesmerized by how sophisticated the women appeared. The skirt was short and hiked up to almost the top of her thighs barely concealing her panties, if she was wearing any. A low cut shirt made the women look busty while making Tsunade wonder if she could ever achieve that sort of image.

"Look kid," the women took a quick drag of her cigarette leaving more lipstick onto the edge, "I ain't schoolin' no one especially a pipsqueak ninja lackin' assets."

The answer she received was less than desirable. Being naïve, Tsunade did not realize why the women had rejected her so instead she decided to follow the women around and learn from a distance. For days she would camp out in an alleyway hiding behind a stack of trashcans watching the vivacious woman standing on the corner with all the confidence and looks in the world. She wondered if sophisticated women wore as much makeup as this one and if they all had bad backs. Standing the way the women did with her chest thrusted into the streets would lead to a bad back in her opinion. Over time she learned the woman's name and her usual suitors. The name that everyone called her by was "Jugs" and for days Tsunade couldn't comprehend why someone would be named after large bottles.

Finally the day came when Tsunade had stayed up long enough to follow Jugs along with a male friend and learn her secrets. Sneaking quietly behind Jugs, she followed the pair to a bar where she saw Jugs playfully punching the man on the arm and batting her eyelashes with hair flipping action. This was not attractive at all the women looked like she had a neck spasm and sometime caught in her eye. Maybe it was her long eyelash extensions. It didn't matter the man was gobbling it all up seeming to be more and more into Jugs.

Now they were moving on… Tsunade quietly perched herself near a skylight that overlooked where the couple was staying. Their journey took them to a hotel by the name of The Dancing Flounder. She could not determine why they would choose to come to a boring hotel or what they would do. Jugs and the man laid casually on the bed staring at each other immersed in their conversation. Reading lips was one skill that Tsunade had become superior at when she was at the Academy and all she could deduce from them was some sort of payment plan. There was silence. The man slipped Jugs a wad of money.

"Wow," she mumbled in awe of what she witnessed, "I cannot believe you would get paid just for going out on a lousy date. I can't wait to grow up! Wait a sec…"

Something new caught her eye, Jugs was getting her garments ripped off by the suitor in a ravenous hurry. All night long the face of the suitor could not be made out from the distance that Tsunade was at and now even with a small light shining through there was still no way to see who he actually was. Now the tables were turned the suitor was being disrobed in frenzy by Jugs. This was all new and confusing to Tsunade there was no possible explanation that she could come up with for their irrational behavior. She glanced up for a moment to look around the roof she was perched on. It was beginning to get cold and clouds were forming overhead. Rain was on its way.

Unpleasant noises reached Tsunade's ears finally she reluctantly stared down below her to see two bodies intertwining without clothes. Her eyes widened in pure confusion and curiosity, she had only heard about people having sex but now she actually comprehending what it entailed. Jugs was wailing at the top of her lungs while suitor was… doing something. From the height she was at she couldn't tell.

Tsunade crawled onto the skylight to get a better look, only to hear a couple of faint cracks from the glass that were overshadowed by what was happening below. "That doesn't sound real."

Another crack was heard before she finally realized something important… she was too heavy. _Crack! _Glass shattered below her body and rained down upon the people below. Jugs and the suitor immediately separated apart with her rolling to one side of the bed and the suitor hitting the wooden floor with a thud.

Pain was shooting throughout her body; the glass had cut her deep in her arms and her cheeks. Unpleasant groans came from the suitor lying on the ground next to the bed while Jugs sat up immediately shooting daggers from her eyes towards the young ninja.

"What the hell do ya think ya are doin'," the women demanded not even feeling self conscious for her body being exposed.

There was a silence where all Tsunade did was glance at the women's body then she finally understood who this woman really was.

Jugs grabbed Tsunade by the arm after pulling on a pale white bathrobe that was hanging on the doorknob of the bathroom located in the room. With brute force she dragged her out of the room into the streets that were now covered in puddles. The clouds had broken and released rain onto the two girls standing near the edge of the street. She pushed Tsunade into the mud with much worse intent for what she was going to do to the little sneak.

Thinking quickly Tsunade came up with a plan that would possibly work on this so-called man charmer. "Help! This woman was making me do stuff that I didn't wanna do!"

Fake tears were flooding down Tsunade's cheeks as people passing them on the streets looked horrified. Jug's face grew red with anger and was starting to boil over. A smacking noise echoed throughout the streets. For a moment Tsunade believed that the woman had actually gotten the courage to physically strike her and her nerves didn't get the message yet.

It turned out the sound was actually a boy wrestling Jugs to the ground before the authorities could show up. The heavy downpour of the rain made it hard for her to make out the young boy who had taken her down. She could've sworn that he had snow white hair and was barely taller than she was, but she decided that her vision could not have been trusted at that moment since she was loosing blood due to her cuts.

The next day Tsunade went to training practice with bandages covering her arms and cheeks. No one questioned her about what had happened; they probably assumed she was getting a little too fancy with the medical ninja training. Jiraiya made comments throughout the entire day about how clumsy she was that she was more of a danger to herself than others around her.

After all that trouble to gain knowledge and beauty tips from Jugs, Tsunade was left with the same fluffy hair that was growing to be even more of a pain.

"Tsunade, come here," Sarutobi-sensei ordered after their practice that day. "I think I can improve your skills as a ninja, but your hair just seems to be getting in the way."

Now Tsunade was feeling defensive and a little foolish. For all she knew, Sarutobi-sensei would probably want her to chop all of her hair off. Orochimaru's hair stood flat and straight blowing in the breeze whenever he was moving while Jiraiya's puffy white hair was fastened behind him in a messy ponytail. Both of them had no issue with their hair.

"I know sensei…. But I really have tried to fix it. You dunno how much trouble I've gone to."

Sarutobi-sensei fumbled around in his pockets for a moment before he removed what was a simple hair tie. Carefully he pulled back a section of her hair leaving most of it to flow down beneath a half ponytail.

"Much better," he triumphantly placed his hands on his hips before waving goodbye to Tsunade leaving her alone on the training grounds. That was the day she forgot about her teammates and only focused on Sarutobi-sensei. It may have caused her relationships with Jiraiya and Orochimaru to be lackluster, but she really wanted things to work out in her favor.

Somewhere in the back of her mind she did realize that what she was dreaming would never become a reality. Except many years later she felt that maybe if she became an excellent medical ninja and gained great strength that maybe the age difference would be no big deal.

Jiraiya was a constant reminder how their age everyday.

The snoring ceased in Tsunade's room and she was left just staring at her finished self in the mirror. Obviously the pain was awake or choked on the pillow and died, either way he was going to be a hassle.

Now dressed in her ninja gear she entered the room only to see a drowsy Jiraiya staring with his eyes half open at Tsunade in the doorway.

"You'd better wake yourself up in a hurry," she commanded harshly giving him a stern look, "we can't afford to be late for our escort mission and you always slow me down."

Just looking at his dazed and confused half awake face made her remember what had happened last night. His lips on her forehead for less than ten seconds. It made her realize that he wasn't an immature jerk that he always made himself out to be. Maybe he could be someone to fit her if she could just loosen up.

"Well… take your time, you just woke up. I suppose we could be a little late."

Wow, being nice to him was harder than she realized and took too much effort. A forced smile was somewhat painful on her cheeks.

Jiraiya winced for a moment trying to focus his just woken eyes on Tsunade for a second. A blush rose to her cheeks. Perhaps he was checking her out and maybe he adored her hair this way before it got messed up in the heat of battle.

"You know," he started to say still wincing at her; "some padded bras might help out with your flat chested problem."

Tsunade clenched her fists immediately feeling rage towards the perverted boy she had to call her comrade. "You bastard! How could I ever feeling sorry for _you_?"

A content smile came across Jiraiya's face but was disrupted by sudden push from Tsunade. The push ended with him on the ground looking up at Tsunade's window that he had just been forced out of. It was too early for him to feel much pain and he was still in that post-sleep daze. The ground was at least somewhat soft.

His clothes rained down on him a few seconds later followed by Tsunade's annoyed voice, "And take your damn clothes with you!"

The worse thing Jiraiya could think of waking up to would be Tsunade's obviously annoyed voice.

Moments later Jiraiya found himself at the gates to Konoha waiting eagerly for the others to show up. Since Tsunade had kicked him out of her house earlier than he desired he went to the pond to change and take a bath before their mission. For the first time he could recall, he had beaten them all there before a mission. Now there was only one final touch he had to add before he could go anywhere. From his pocket he removed his Leaf Village forehead protector and tied it tightly around his forehead. The only time the three of them ever wore their forehead protectors was when they were going on missions. They wanted to feel a sense of normalcy everyday they didn't have a mission, but that was a rarity.

"How did it go?" A familiar voice popped up from behind Jiraiya.

Orochimaru… he always had a tendency to pop up out of nowhere.

"I guess it went okay… I didn't tell her anything, but I did get a warm place to sleep for the night where it wasn't so lonely."

One of Orochimaru's eyebrows was raised when Jiraiya had finished his statement. The way he had phrased it made him sound like he had bitten off more than he could chew with Tsunade. The thought of that certain act happening between two of his teammates even made Orochimaru blush while staring confused at Jiraiya's overly happy face.

Hesitantly Orochimaru began to open his mouth to ask Jiraiya a question about the night beforehand.

A puff of a smoke appeared to the two chuunin revealing Sarutobi-sensei with Tsunade loyally attatched to his hip. She gave a million dollar smile to sensei and Orochimaru while shooting daggers at Jiraiya for even attempting to gaze in her direction.

"So which overly rich snob are we escorting today?" Jiraiya questioned crossing his arms over his chest.

"Jiraiya, please don't call our clients snobs," Sarutobi-sensei sighed leaning against a post attatched to the arch over the entrance to the village.

Of course Tsunade nodded in agreement with whatever Sarutobi-sensei ever breathed and then focused her eyes back onto him. With one swift motion Sarutobi pulled a map out of his flak jacket and laid it out on the ground for everyone to see. His eyes focused intently on the Leaf Village located in the Fire Country and then trailed along until they reached a small dot on the other side of the Fire Country.

"This is an escort mission to the Rose Village; we will be making sure that their newest princess makes it safely there to meet her new fiancé."

His finger traced the route while putting emphasis on the places that he felt would be the more risky to go through. "We have to protect her since the marriage will bring together two villages into a unity, but obviously some people will not want this marriage to happen. Expect the worst at all times even at night. And boys…"

When he paused his eyes met directly with the blank faces of Orochimaru and Jiraiya. A chill ran up their spines wondering what their sensei could possibly have to say to them that was so important that gave him such a serious face.

"… Don't try anything led by your hormones when you see her. Think with your heads, not your bodies."

Orochimaru shrugged and glanced over at Jiraiya only to see him shrug with the same disinterest in seeing the so-called princess. Everytime they had seen a princess they would get their hopes up about seeing the most beautiful and graceful creature stepping out of that carriage, but instead they always got someone who looked like they had been beaten with an ugly nunchaku over and over.

A carriage was making its way towards the four ninja. They formed the line and stood at attention in anticipation of who would come out. The carriage finally came to a halt and the door swung open revealing a short round man with huge cheeks dressed in fine robes. Tsunade's face looked less than enthused by who stepped out of the carriage and the only thing she could think off was how he desperately needed to bathe. Sweat was seeping down his red face as he stepped to the side and greeted Sarutobi-sensei.

"This guy's is our _princess_!?" Jiraiya protested clenching his fists together. "It looks like he ate a princess!"

An embaressed look came across Orochimaru's face as he tipped his head in remorse for his very outspoken friend. The round man looked rather insulted by Jiraiya's harsh words and Tsunade was giggling to herself in the corner actually for a moment finding the words that Jiraiya spoke to be true. Quickly she stopped when she saw how unpleasant Sarutobi-sensei's face turned.

"Well I never," the man said in a snotty tone of voice holding a damp handkerchief to his face only sweeping away some of the sweat.

Sarutobi-sensei's hand flew over Jiraiya's mouth in an effort to keep the overly eager chuunin from ruining their mission. "I am so sorry for his behavior. He never shuts up."

"Yeah, so immature, Jiraiya," Tsunade cooed in a mocking tone.

"I found it quite amusing."

A quiet and refine voice broke the tense air surrounding everyone in the escort party. The carriage shook for a moment as a young girl made her way down the steps of the carriage. Everyone looked attentive when she finally stopped and stood next to the round snotty man. Her gaze and happy smile was directly only towards Jiraiya, who was still being smothered by Sarutobi-sensei's hand.

"Hello," she stated calmly never breaking her gaze towards Jiraiya. "My name is Princess Aya, and I am most pleased that you fine shinobi could escort me to my new home."

Everything about the girl contradicted what Jiraiya and Orochimaru expected to see when they escorted royalty. Instead of being fat after eating one too many fine teacakes, she was small and thin with fair skin and hair, her eyes were an odd shade of lilac, her outfits fit her form making her look seductive yet proper, her voice was perfectly pitched like she was singing when she was speaking, and Jiraiya just stared at her blankly.

* * *

That's the end of Chapter Three, which is so-long the longest chapter I have written. This chapter actually took some time where I had to pause while writing it. I wrote the first two paragraphs than I went away for four days and didn't pick it up again until many days after I got back. Even then I took a break while writing to keep ideas bouncing around.

Anywho, that's it. Thank you for all of you who are reading and reviewing. I did my best to search for typos in this chapter after looking over my previous ones. Yikes, only a few but stil yikes.

Hopefully Jugs didn't offend anyone but I thought she would add some more flavor to the entire story as kind of a sidenote. Who knows what trouble Aya will stir up, even if Jiraiya is oblivious like every man who's a teen out there.

Thank you again for reading and reviewing. I hope that you all keep reading and enjoy my story. Your comments help me take a step in the right direction. This story better be getting good as it's going along than worse. :D!


	4. Hey Jealousy

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is the trademark of some guy with lots of money. Not mine.

**Chapter Four: Hey Jealousy**

The sun was beating down on the four man ninja squad as they made their way through the forest. On a hot day like today the trees didn't provide adequate protection from the blaring sun. A bead of sweat ran down the side of Jiraiya's face, this was when he realized that maybe growing out his thick, white hair to a long length was not the most intelligent idea he had. His eyes began to wander to his surroundings. There was thick forest on both sides of the path they were traveling on. At any moment they could be ambushed by someone hiding within the brush. The covered carriage containing the princess was wheeling its way in front of them guided by two black horses. Orochimaru walked alongside Jiraiya looking seriously at the road ahead. Sarutobi-sensei had the same look but it was worn down by the heat and Tsunade walking so closely next to him.

You knew it was hot when your shoes stuck to your feet.

"I'm hot," Jiraiya finally whined giving all the energy he had left on dragging out the word hot.

No one commented instead they followed quietly behind the carriage hoping eventually Jiraiya would collapse from heat exhaustion. Little did they know they were only making him more determined to break the silence.

_Squish! _

Still no one acknowledged the noise.

_Squish! Squish! Squish!_

Tsunade clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, whatever Jiraiya was doing now it was beginning to annoy her.

_Squish! Squish! Squish! Squish! Squish!_

The noise stopped and everyone let out a sigh of relief. Whatever the noise was it had finally ended.

_Squishhhhhhhhhh! _

Tsunade finally snapped. "Jiraiya, what the hell are you doing over there?!"

Jiraiya looked over at Tsunade and shot a content smile holding up something circular and tan in his hands. Now she was confused, the small object looked familiar but she couldn't exactly place what it was. Again he squeezed it letting out another squishing noise that seemed to thoroughly amuse him.

"I dunno what it is, but I found it on the floor of your room," he answered still cradling it in the palms of his hands. "Whatever it is… if you squeeze it, it makes a squishy noise."

_I found it on the floor of your room? _Tsunade thought to herself still trying to keep her pace with Sarutobi-sensei and think of the mystery object. Finally she realized and her face turned crimson with both rage and embarrassment. The little thief had stolen one of the inserts to her bra to create extra padding. Sarutobi-sensei had glanced over for a moment to look at the object fully realizing what it was the moment he laid his eyes on it. It wasn't exactly a toy, but Jiraiya had found a way to make it into one. Even Orochimaru was embaressed to be around Jiraiya with the padded bra insert in his hands. It was only making what Jiraiya said about spending the night seem worse.

"That's not a toy. I need that for womanly reasons. Something someone lacking sensitivity and common knowledge like you wouldn't comprehend." Tsunade didn't yell. She didn't have to, her voice was harsh enough on its own without bring volume into the picture.

Jiraiya stared blankly at Tsunade still clutching the insert. "Womanly reasons?"

"Yes, Jiraiya, women place those sorts of objects on their person to make themselves appear larger," Orochimaru calmly explained.

No one spoke for a moment all staring in astonishment at Orochimaru and his common knowledge on women at his age.

"So you didn't like your nickname, did ya Flat-Chesty? It's a pity that you're so desperate that you've resorted to this."

Tsunade's anger was boiling over and she lunged towards Jiraiya with full intent to kill the little pervert. What nerve he had not even knowing what the object was and then criticizing her for it afterward. Sometimes she just wanted to punch that smug little smirk off of his face. Before she could even reach Jiraiya, Sarutobi-sensei caught her in mid-air placing her underneath one of his arms.

"Now, now, you two. We're supposed to be on an escort mission so stop squabbling over such trivial problems," he interjected putting his free hand out for Jiraiya to hand over the padding.

"Yes, sensei," they both reluctantly agreed in unison.

Jiraiya placed the pad within Sarutobi-sensei's hand and watched him place it within his back pocket without even a look of shame on his face. The man probably just wanted to look at it later; he was such a pervert no wonder Jiraiya was turning into him. Calmly he placed Tsunade down on the ground next to him.

No one spoke for hours as they continued their journey, but everyone could feel the silent hate vibes radiating off of Tsunade towards Jiraiya. It was making everyone feel more uncomfortable and on edge.

Finally the carriage in front of them came to a screeching halt when the sun was just about to disappear behind the trees for a brief period of time. Sighs of relief from three of the ninjas echoed in unison baring a heavy burden of thirst and heat frustration. There was only one person who didn't give out a sigh of relief….

_Thunk! _

Jiraiya.

_Thud!_

Jiraiya let out a groan rubbing his now raw head and bottom on the ground. Often when he was walking for long distances in the immense heat his body would go to autopilot where he wouldn't pay attention to where he was going. It was like he was in a trance with the world around him making him a useless dummy until something snapped him out of it. That something happened to be the carriage.

The look on Tsunade's face was unimpressed but deep down she was laughing at how sometimes Jiraiya had his own adorable moments. Except laughing would show how immature she was and that was something she didn't want to be around Sarutobi-sensei. It had taken many years to build up a persona of being sophisticated and she wasn't going to ruin it for a knucklehead such as him.

The carriage shook and rattled for a moment catching the attention of the squad. Jiraiya still sat on the ground with his feet stretched out in front of him starting to recompose himself after wandering aimlessly into the carriage. Orochimaru couldn't allow his closest friend to embarrass himself or disrespect a princess on their first B-Ranked escort mission.

Gracefully Aya emerged from the carriage first with her straight blond hair flowing from side to side as she walked. The rounded man, who was probably her assistant, followed loyally taking his placed next to her once she stopped in front of the squad. When she looked over at the squad she went down the line. Tsunade, Sarutobi-sensei, Orochimaru holding Jiraiya up… That stopped her. Her eyes fell back to what she had just glanced over. It wasn't a trick of the light or anything.

There stood Orochimaru looking as casual and calm as he possibly could, holding a lazy Jiraiya by the arms in front of him. Princess Aya bit her finger trying to piece together why he would possibly be exhibiting that sort of behavior. It was truly bizarre and made her only the more intrigued by this white-haired ninja.

"Um… well… I wish to thank you all humbly for escorting me this far without any troubles." When she spoke her eyes went down the line of ninja but stopped and stuck to Jiraiya with his eyes half open in a lazy fashion.

This didn't faze her, she continued.

"I hope that you will set up a safe camp," now she looked down at her feet, her age was becoming more and more apparent. The girl probably wasn't over the age of fifteen. "I hope that you, Master Jiraiya, will accompany me in my tent tonight."

Orochimaru dropped Jiraiya onto the ground immediately in utter shock to what he had just heard.

The rounded man looked like he was about to protest but was quickly shot down by a glare from the Princess. It left Tsunade speechless and frozen in place. A feeling was taking over her mind, but she couldn't quite place it. It couldn't be jealousy. There was no way she would be jealous of some snooty princess interested in her teammate. The only other time she had ever felt this feeling was when Sarutobi-sensei was around his wife but this time was different, the feeling was stronger. She covered her face in her palm trying to act like everyone around her who was embaressed for the little perverted ninja.

Jiraiya looked up at Princess Aya's eager face than shrugged answering simply, "Okay."

_What?! _All three of his teammates thought in unison looking more rigid and confused. Now Tsunade was trying to get him out of it by shooting dagger eyes at Jiraiya, but failed miserably. When he glanced over all he did was shrug. He couldn't figure out why it was such a big deal. A nice cozy tent that's royal is going to be ten times as better then sleeping in the dirt. Anyways he would probably get to eat all the little teacakes she probably has been stowing away.

Everyone was just way too stiff.

Princess Aya looked overjoyed clapping her hands with wild excitement. Instantly she grabbed Jiraiya's arm escorting him to the already set up royal tent. He went willingly giving Orochimaru a huge smile as he was whisked off by the princess leaving his teammates in utter shock.

"Sensei," Orochimaru stammered quietly not trying to mask the shock in his voice, "what just happened?"

Sarutobi-sensei cleared his throat trying to retain his composure after the sudden shock. "Well Jiraiya just got lucky sometimes the people we escort fancy someone to keep them company at night… and for some reason she seems to have taking a liking to Jiraiya. Hopefully he won't do anything stupid, but in the mean time we're still on a mission."

"S-should we be worried?" Hiding the stammer of surprise and masking her jealousy Tsunade forced out those words towards Orochimaru. Sarutobi-sensei had taken his leave to go and gather wood for the fire leaving the two chuunin.

"He's a big boy. I am quite confident he can handle himself."

"Y-yeah, but come on! He's Jiraiya, I'm pretty sure he has no idea what he's doing or why she wants him there. The guy's totally oblivious to the fact that leaves fall off trees in the autumn. Remember? He thought the world was coming to an end."

All Orochimaru did was shrug and wander off to help Sarutobi-sensei find some wood for the fire leaving Tsunade with her thoughts and the order to guard the royal tent.

The fire was blazing in front of the three of them and nightfall had finally come. Now there was danger lurking everywhere around them and they had to be on their best guard. Since ninja usually strike later in the night Sarutobi-sensei took the first sleep shift so he could be awake during the harshest of the attacks. If there were any.

Orochimaru sat quietly against a tree gazing at the fire with Tsunade sitting on a log on the other side of the flames. Sarutobi-sensei was quietly sleeping in between where they were sitting. It was too quiet and Tsunade pulled her knees to her chest. Her eyes kept darting back and forth between the tent where Jiraiya was and Orochimaru. The feelings she was having shouldn't have been overflowing in her mind, but they were. There were so many unanswered questions…. Why Jiraiya? Why her tent? Why Jiraiya?! What does she want with him? What were they doing?!

It was driving her nuts.

Maybe she could fight fire with fire. Jiraiya shouldn't be making her feel jealous. It should be the other way around! Two can play the jealousy card.

Her eyes fell on Orochimaru and a slick smirk came across her face. Now all she had to do was act irresistible. All it took was a little fluffing of her hair and a quick run across her teeth with her tongue. It would've been awful if there was something caught in her teeth. Taking a deep breath she decided to go in for the kill.

Orochimaru sat there, still looking up towards the stars paying no attention at all to anything around him, but Tsunade knew that with his keen ninja senses that was all an illusion. Deep down she knew that leading him on was wrong but she had to get rid of the negative feelings she was having and if it meant one upping Jiraiya by hitting on his best friend then so be it. Usually she detested the way women acted around men loosing all of their brains just so they would like them, it made her sick to her stomach. Except she had never seen Orochimaru with another girl so maybe he did like that sort of thing.

At the Academy many girls fell for his pale, flawless skin and long soft, raven hair that fell into place but he did nothing but give them the cold shoulder. All he ever did was act like friends with them and nothing more. Jiraiya was the only person Orochimaru even ever seemed to really consider a good friend.

Slowly she scooted around the fire and placed herself next to where Orochimaru was sitting. He glanced down at her wondering why she had so suddenly changed her position. A smile came across her face and she simply replied.

"There was a bug over there. Heh."

There was silence except for the crickets all around them and the crackling of the fire at their feet. Tsunade bit her lip starting to have second thoughts about how this would mess up the team demeanor, but quickly changed her mind. There was no way she was going to back out and be called a coward.

"So… Orochimaru," she cooed leaning against him in way she thought would be lusty. She ran her fingers up and down his arm smoothly trying to give him some comfort, even though it was more of a purpose to calm her down. "I was thinking, since we're all alone in the dark, dangerous maybe we could get closer or… err… something."

Orochimaru tensed up feeling a little trapped when Tsunade leaned really closely against him, wrapping her arms around his left forearm. Now he was getting frazzled and finding himself at a loss for words. "Um… Tsunade…"

"Shh," she placed on his lips, "You don't have to be so shy. I can be confident for the both of us."

"No, Tsunade." He abruptly shoved her off, retreating to a tree a couple of feet away.

Now he was making her angry and he wouldn't like her when he was angry. What was wrong with this guy? How could he just shove her off like that? She wasn't enough for _him_?

"What's the matter, pipsqueak." Harshly she grabbed Orochimaru by the collar and shook him wildly for a second. "I'm not quiet enough for you? Or are you secretly a perv like your bestest buddy and like girls with chests?!"

A blush spread across Orochimaru's face as he tried to do anything but look at Tsunade especially now that she was mad. "Umm… maybe it is about time I came clean."

"Huh?"

Gently Tsunade let Orochimaru down to where he was sitting before than took a place next to him. It was weird that he would be keeping a secret; she didn't think he had anything to keep from anyone. Instead she just thought he was a boring person because he never talked to anyone besides Jiraiya. Maybe he liked younger women like that lame pipsqueak Shizune that every boy in Konoha was now secretly pining for.

There was an awkward silence between the two teammates before Orochimaru finally took a deep breath.

"I have not told anyone this yet. Not even Jiraiya so please keep it a secret." Now he was beginning to believe that he shouldn't tell her, but he didn't know how well Jiraiya would take the news if he spilled the beans. Maybe it was better to tell a female.

Tsunade nodded in agreement with an attentive look in her eyes.

"You see… it is not that you are not a good looking girl, but you see… I don't like women."

"Shut up," Tsunade snapped on an impulse.

"W-what?" Now Orochimaru was confused, he didn't exactly expect that reaction from her.

"You're such a kidder. Ha ha. Man, you had me going for a second there. Like you're actually ga-."

Tsunade paused when she saw Orochimaru lower his head trying to hide what he probably believed was shame. She breathed. "Wow."

There was now trust built between them and Tsunade was holding a huge secret that Orochimaru spilled to her in confidence. Maybe now they could better understand each other. Well… now she at least understood him a little better. Orochimaru still looked embaressed, his face more flushed than usual and his eyes looking to be tearing up. Now he was looking venerable to her.

"Don't you worry," she comforted him confidently, "I'll keep your secret good and safe."

For the rest of the night they didn't need to speak the silence was enough chatter for the both of them. Instead, Tsunade gazed at the royal tent again and wondered what Jiraiya was doing.

* * *

Chapter Four is up only two days later. Woo!

If this chapter pushes some people's buttons, I'm sorry. I know the Orochimaru coming out of the closet scenario may rub people the wrong way, but I believe that may be the case with him and I'm okay with that stuff but some people may not.

Also I mentioned Shizune who is... twenty years younger than Tsunade and since Tsunade's seventeen in this story that's a problem but she seemed like the best candidate for the spot she's in.

Once again, thank you to everyone who reads my stories and reviews them. I especially love the reviews they make me smile. Umm... and keep it up because you guys are the best. :D!

Next chapter will be where Jiraiya is, just for a spoiler. Hee hee. R&R please. Enjoy.


	5. Not Found in Books

**DISCLAIMER: **Naruto is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto, so yeah, I don't rule.

**Chapter Five: Not Found in Books**

Excitement was flowing through Jiraiya's veins as he happily bounced around the royal tent taking in everything he possibly could. The sights, the feeling of the silk everywhere, and the smells of everything around him, he wanted to do everything at once. Being in a royal tent was a totally new experience for him and he was going to indulge himself to the fullest living in the luxury.

For a moment he rolled around the floor of the tent in pure joy for not having to sleep on the ground alongside Orochimaru and the others. Orochimaru was always creepy during the campouts, never really saying a word but quietly watching everyone's movements even if they were his own teammates. Taking sleep shifts was something he wasn't going to have to take part in either. Sleep shifts were always the most miserable part of missions, someone would stay awake and keep guard while others were sleeping then switch every couple of hours. No matter what shift you were on, you would never seem to get enough sleep. Tsunade was always the most unpleasant person to wake up being constantly crabby if you even accidentally stepped on a stick during her sleep shift.

Letting out a yawn, Jiraiya curled up into a little ball already to fall asleep from walking around so much that day. He pulled a silk pillow underneath his head and closed his eyes, completely forgetting one important detail.

"Jiraiya…?"

His nose wrinkled at the sound of the soft female voice luring overhead. Sometimes a woman's voice was in the back of his head telling him to do useless junk. Usually the useless junk was the right path to take in troubling situations. Tsunade told him that little voice was his conscious and he should listen to it more often, but like most things Tsunade said he brushed it off.

"Jiraiya," the voice continued now shaking him on the shoulder.

Now the voice was taking advantage of him physically. If he kept ignoring it like he usually did it would eventually go away.

"Jiraiya!" Now the voice was violent, delivering a swift kick across Jiraiya's shoulder blades.

"Ouch," he grumbled rolling over and opening his eyes to see Princess Aya looking down at him with a concerned look.

"Are you okay? Did you damage your shoulders while you were escorting me today? Oh my, I will aid you so you will not be uncomfortable."

_No, I didn't damage my shoulders, you did_, he thought sitting up groggily. Now he was quite positive this girl was insane. First, she invites him to sleep in her nice tent then she wakes him up from sleeping. Wait scratch that. She kicks him to wake him up from sleeping. There is something seriously wrong with this girl.

Jiraiya was reluctantly pulled up by Princess Aya, all he did was keep his same half awake and not very please look. Maybe he wouldn't get any sleep after all, but what would she want him to do all night long? Now he was beginning to wonder what his teammates were doing outside of the tent. For all of the bad that often happens while they are on escorts he felt his heart tug. When they were younger Sarutobi-sensei would always bring marshmallows so they could sit around the fire, roasting them together. All of them would laugh at the stories Sarutobi-sensei would tell them about when he was there age and all the awkward situations he ever had.

Sometimes Jiraiya and Orochimaru would play tricks on Tsunade. One time they found a snake, they later named after Sarutobi-sensei, and placed it in Tsunade's sleeping bag before she fell asleep that night. They watched and waited for her reaction when she slipped into her sleeping bag becoming instantly disappointed when she didn't react at all. Instead they just figured the snake had slivered away or something. How wrong they were. A couple of hours later, Tsunade woke up screaming and jumping around the campsite. The snake had somehow found its way into Tsunade's top. Orochimaru and Jiraiya were laughing for days, but Tsunade got them back on different escort mission when she laced their marshmallows with poison ivy. She was laughing for days leaving Orochimaru and Jiraiya with red, puffy, and swollen mouths.

Jiraiya popped out of his nostalgia feeling something tugging on his robe. Finally it fell off of his shoulders lying across the floor beside him.

"Huh," he mouthed to himself realizing he was in his fishnet shirt and pants that he wore underneath his robe. Sadly his team almost dressed the same.

A very smiley Princess Aya was sitting in front of his wearing her bathrobe that was just slipping off of her shoulder. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow at her. Usually on escort missions he just wore his regular clothes to bed but she was undressing him. What was she going to do next… bathe him?

"Are you going to wash my robe for me?" he asked happily giving her a million dollar smile.

The comment really seemed to irk Princess Aya now she looked frustrated but quickly changed to pouting. "My, my Jiraiya, you're so cute when you're playing hard to get."

_Hard to get, _he thought now even more confused. "What do you mean? I'm sitting right here."

Aya inched her way towards him, sliding her hand up his thigh slowly like she was taking in every inch of his leg and feeling for any abnormalities. That's the impression Jiraiya was getting. Maybe she was making sure he didn't have any ticks on his legs, those little buggers were always attracted to him. Suddenly she stopped really close to the waistband of his pants.

"Thanks," he said out of the blue thinking she was done checking for bugs.

"No need to thank me, I am not through yet." With that Aya began to pull down his pants getting frustrated at the fact he wasn't moving or making the removal of his pants any easier. With a fierce tug she yanked them off of his legs revealing a lovely pair of boxers with little toads on them.

Jiraiya just shrugged.

Again her hands were on the move this time fidgeting with the bottom of his fishnet shirt. All of sudden he was beginning to feel uncomfortable and even more confused. There was nothing familiar to him about this situation it was all new and somewhat terrifying. The shirt was slipped off and Jiraiya snapped his eyes closed being pushed down on the pillows below.

Before these pillows held excitement now they were holding a new burden of him being involved in something and having no idea. Something heavy was weighing down his chest. His silver eyes opened feeling a hand brush through his bushy white hair. _What's going on? I don't understand, _blankly Jiraiya stared at the body of Princess Aya above him now lacking the robe she was haphazardly wearing when she entered the tent. Something soft bushed against his neck for a moment then repeated going down his shoulders.

Now the situation was becoming familiar like something he had read once before. Sarutobi-sensei often carried around books, mind you poorly written books, but books nonetheless. They had boring titles that left nothing to the imagination and was only a disappointment when Orochimaru and Jiraiya had stolen them from his pouch one day. The characters were involved in these situations but they were different, they were frenzied and full of passion, even if they were poorly written. Jiraiya told Orochimaru that he could write better and more interesting novels then this garbage.

_So this is what they did in those novels. _Everything seemed forced and unsure. There was no feeling in the movements it was all robotic, not at all how Jiraiya would've imagined the actual moments being. These weren't the movements of someone seemingly ready for these experiences. Instead they were the movements of a fifteen year-old girl trying to grow up too fast in front a seventeen year-old boy.

Aya stopped, hopefully thanks to Jiraiya's refusal to move or acknowledge the situation she would have stopped. Hair was clouding her face so he couldn't create eye contact with the girl. Something was tugging now on his boxer shorts. _What the hell? _Now she was actually trying to speed up the process. This was the final straw, even for Jiraiya.

He shot up pushing the princess off harshly. When her eyes met his they were sad and disgraced like she had done something wrong while his were stern and serious.

"Did I displease you," she muttered tears flooding her eyes, it was enough to melt a person's heart.

"I didn't know that I needed to be pleased to be completely honest."

Pulling his legs to his chest, he saw her eyes brimming with tears. There was no way he was going to do what she wanted him to do.That stuff was just too serious and there was still the age difference.

"Sorry," he mumbled reluctantly his mind now wandering to what Tsunade would be doing right now. He immediately shook his head trying to get her out of his mind. There was no way he could still like her. There was just no way...

"I… I… just…" Aya was stuttering trying to spill out the words with a full blown blush on her face. "I… wanted someone to practice on before I was wed."

How the heck was Jiraiya supposed to answer to that? It was both an insult and sort of sweet all at the same time. His facial expression was probably somewhere between insulted, stunned, and touched. Why would someone want to practice anyways? This princess obviously had some self esteem issues.

Jiraiya looked at her seriously. "Don't they have books for that?"

Aya shook her head and he felt disappointed. The girl must not have heard of those horrid books that Sarutobi-sensei had been reading. Wherever this girl was from they didn't have enough raunchy literature around to educate their youth.

His body, mind, and ego were worn out. Yet he wasn't sure if the princess would be ready for sleep instead she appeared like she ate a jar of sugar. Her gaze went upward trying to make her soft, blue eyes meet with his like she was pleading silently with him to reconsider. Jiraiya wasn't an easy person to be swayed.

It was bed time and now he was going to sleep, but the actual bed seemed dangerous. It was mocking him with its many soft pillows and sheets made of silk. He knew if he sat on that bed for one second he would instantly fall asleep for days. Aya was watching him like a predator. A smile crept across her fine lips when she caught him staring at the bed with desire.

She stood up, walking towards the bed set up for her swaying her hips from side to side. Using a bed to seduce a ninja, how cruel and unusual this girl was pure evil. The way she walked made him think her hips were dislocated. Taking her sweet little time, she pulled the covers back slowly before she slipped into them, then pulling the covers over every curve of her small frame. Her blond hair fell into place over her shoulders when she was laying on her side looking directly at Jiraiya.

It was inviting.

Blood was rushing… until Tsunade's head popped onto Aya's body. His eyes widened, he blinked furiously in wonderment at his teammates head on another's body. Well Aya did have what Tsunade lacked. Wait, what was he thinking? He shook his head furiously feeling the heat rising to his face.

"Night!" Jiraiya announced pulling the tablecloth off of the small coffee table in the tent, using it as a blanket.

Instantly he curled up into a ball turned away from where Aya was located. The ground was hard and cold beneath his cheeks. A sigh echoed from the room which Jiraiya ignored pretending he was sleeping. The candles were blown out and there was silence. He shifted pulling a silky pillow he was lying on earlier underneath his head.

How many people would've have killed to be in his current position? It's not that she wasn't pretty, in his honest opinion she was gorgeous. Maybe if they had met at a different time, in a different place than the outcome would've been to her liking as well as his. Right now his feelings were misplaced and lost in the shuffle of teammates, missions, and kunai. There was something there and it wasn't between him and Orochimaru.

There had to have been signs that he had missed over the years. Everytime she spoke to him, she was rough, harsh, and violent like she had something to prove. The night before Tsunade seemed different like a softer side took over when the training grounds were in the distance. When the life of a shinobi was removed from the equation they seemed to be very different.

His nose crinkled at the thought of getting involved with a teammate, especially one so self-conscious about everything she did.

Shinobi weren't allowed to express any emotions.

If there was a mix of affection on the battlefield and something went wrong, it would be a devastating blow. Everything they endured years of training for would be ruined in an instant with the death of someone they cared about. They would lose the drive to be what they were destined to be. That was something he wouldn't allow to happen.

There was too much animosity in between the two of them. Even when they were younger they always seemed to be harsh towards each other, criticizing each other everytime one of them breathed out of sync. On his side he was being harsh to push her away, save her from being one of those girls who were constantly mourning at the Hero's Memorial for their loved one they lost in combat. Even if it was selfish he was doing it to protect himself from that same fate as well.

He glided his tongue over his teeth then shifted sides again, falling into an uneasy sleep.

A thud awoke Jiraiya in the middle of the night; he lazily opened one eye to scan the still dark room. There was only a small candle being used for lighting so he assumed the princess probably had to use the bathroom or something. He yawned, curling up in the tablecloth trying to fall back to sleep. Her footsteps were soft and sly like she wasn't trying to wake him up and sneak away.

A couple of moments passed and no princess. If something happened he was quite confident that Sarutobi-sensei would've alerted everyone. There was nothing, just silence and the faint sound of people whispering outside of the tent. Curiosity took him over. He stayed on his toes only pulling the bottom flap of the tent open slightly to peek underneath.

Princess Aya stood in front of a shadowed figure. A smirk was pasted on her face; her eyes taking in every whisper the figure seemed to be telling her. From where he was sitting he couldn't make out what they were saying, the darkness was too thick for him to read their lips and they weren't speaking loud enough. His head poked out from underneath the tent to gain a better range.

A ninja has to conceal their presence.

"He'll be taken care of," Aya's soft voice spoke, "They'll be taken care of. My ninja escort team is a complete joke."

An annoyed grunt came from the shadowed figure. "Just do your job."

"I assure you on the day of my…" A stick snapped nearby and the figure disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"What are you doing awake, Princess," a familiar and deep voice asked, walking into the place where the shadowed figure was standing only a moments earlier.

When he entered the small candlelight, a flood of relief spilled over Jiraiya. Sarutobi-sensei had shown up after all but he had just missed something odd. Who was that person? Why was she talking about his team like that? They were making sure she stayed alive until she got to her wedding. Whoever "he" was he seemed to be in a big amount of trouble.

"Fresh air," Aya responded sweetly wandering back towards where the tent was. "Good night."

_Shit_, Jiraiya thought sliding back underneath the tent flap. The curtain pulled back, Aya's eyes scanned the room with full intensity to make sure no one had seen what she had been doing. Jiraiya pulled the tablecloth over his head for cover making trying to steady his breathing to create an image of him sleeping.

There was too much running through his head for him to drift into sleep

* * *

This is my least favorite chapter so far. I had way too many problems writing this chapter like I didn't know how to handle certain situations, my style felt weak, and I didn't have inspiration for the longest time. RPing has been sucking out all of my creative writing skills and has been dumbing me down.

Once again thank you to everyone who takes the time to read, review, and do whatever with this story. You all get internet cookies for your support. Hopefully some people will review this chapter, I adore the feedback.

So blah, hopefully the next chapter will be better. Until then go hug a Kimimaro. :D


	6. Fueled

**DISCLAIMER**: Naruto is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto. He owns and created these characters, I'm just manipulating their lives for entertainment purposes.

**Chapter Six: Fueled  
**

Morning came too soon. A familiar, comforting scent filled Tsunade's senses and a soft smile fell across her lips. Even though she was fully awake, she didn't want to move, finally she got comfortable on a mission. The scent enchanted her senses again. Even being well versed in the smells of the forest and being a highly credible medical ninja, she couldn't quite place the smell. It was clean yet musky and very inviting. She nestled her head deeper into the soft cloth propping her up. Maybe Sarutobi-sensei had laid his flack jacket down for her in the middle of the night.

What she was resting her head on shifted.

Her heart skipped a beat, maybe she was resting on Sarutobi-sensei. If she was then his smell was simply amazing. It was time to wake up to him as graceful as possible. Slowly her amber eyes opened, leaving them half open she looked up at whoever her pillow was with dreamy eyes.

_Oh my gosh_, she thought, her eyes now shooting open looking at Orochimaru in awe and embarrassment. Words couldn't be formed there was just so many things wrong with this picture. Even Orochimaru seemed to be struggling to keep a straight face. His eyes were avoiding her in every possible way.

"Well, you two seemed to have a nice night." The voice was smug and critical coming from right in front of them.

Tsunade looked down at the familiar ninja shoes standing before her then followed them up to a smirking face. _Jiraiya?! _Now what was she supposed to do? Her mind was going a mile a minute until she realized she was still lying on Orochimaru's lap.

"Um… uh… err… You pervert!" Tsunade thrusted a chakra powered fist straight for Orochimaru's face only to be dodged in the blink of an eye.

Missing Orochimaru caused her to slam into the ground. Dust circled her, lying there feeling very discontent and embarrassed. The snickers of Orochimaru and Jiraiya echoed through her ears. How unfair the world was feeling right now. She rose to her knees seeing the backs of her teammates already involved in some conversation. She was always the odd person out and envied the relationship that Orochimaru and Jiraiya had created.

Orochimaru was curious giving his overly chipper, white haired teammate a once over. There seemed to be no difference in him. "How was your night?"

"Huh," his silver eyes grew large reaching his arms behind his head. "Well she wanted to do some stuff but she's getting married so I declined. Wouldn't wanna start a war, now would we?"

"I suppose."

There was no doubt in Orochimaru's mind that Jiraiya was telling him the stone, cold truth. While others may make up stories about girls coming onto them, he never pegged his teammate as the type who would stoop that low. Jiraiya was adored by many girls and he reveled in their attention not fully understanding their intentions. Instead of focusing on girls, he worked too hard as a ninja to actually know what many already had done at their age. The oblivious nature that he had obtained was based off of the fact he wanted to become a very powerful shinobi. What probably gave Jiraiya a big ego was the attention he caught from the girls around him.

His reasons for not sleeping with the princess may have been slightly different.

A huge smile was on Jiraiya's face as he described the pillows in a great amount of detail to Orochimaru. Sneaking out that morning was more difficult than some of the most dangerous missions that he had ever been on. He felt like an escape artist, rising to his feet when the sun peeked over the horizon. The real trick was going to be gathering up all his clothes that were strewn all over the tent's floor. There was a feeling dwindling in the back of his mind that this would not be the last time he would be picking up his clothes in some girl's presence.

Waking up the princess would probably end in molestation of the unwanted kind.

Jiraiya pulled his pants on in a nervous frenzy hopping around the room on one foot about to lose his balance with every bounce. Bouncing backwards he slipped on the tablecloth he had been using as a blanket and slammed backwards into the coffee table. This was always his luck. Why couldn't he be graceful in everyday life? At the Academy graduation he tripped and landed on the table where the headbands were located. It rained headbands for around five minutes and around half of them got caught in the revolving fans above. The proctors made sure to give him one of the cracked headbands that had been circling around in the fan.

His eyes winced in pain shooting throughout his body but they instantly fell upon the sleeping princess in the corner. She seemed unmoved by the commotion that he had just created. These types of things never happened to Orochimaru. Moving quickly to his knees he began to move everything back into place.

A plain manila folder caught his eye. The words on the front cover read _Team Sarutobi, Konoha. _

He looked around the room for a moment before licking his lips in curiosity to what could be concealed in this seemingly average folder. The coast was clear. The first page had a picture of Sarutobi-sensei on it, listing everything about him from his blood type to his jutsus. Everything was there his birth date, the day he got married, who he got married to, and even his weaknesses.

The next paper in the pile was Orochimaru's with his picture paper clipped to the edge. It was a very recognizable picture from after they graduated to genin. They hadn't really changed much in appearance in the past five years. Instead they only got taller and voices got deeper. When they became jonin they would finally get a new picture. Difficultly high, was scribbled in the upper-right hand corner. The handwriting was unfamiliar, probably not from the normal personnel working at the office where these were filed.

Jiraiya shifted to the next sheet in the pile, it was Tsunade's. In her picture her eyes were closed and there was a huge, bright smile on her face. The office had stamped the words 'medical ninja' at the top of hers for special categorization. There weren't too many medical ninjas around so they had to keep a count. Foreign handwriting was located at upper-right hand corner again. This time it read Difficulty, moderate.

There was only one page left in the file; his. He nervously shifted to the last page only to see a huge, red circle around his file picture. There was nothing else scribbled on the page. His eyes kept running over the familiar words about his life without stopping for a couple of minutes. The file picture was unique and less professional then his teammates mainly because he sneezed the moment the picture was taken.

His file and Sarutobi-sensei's were the only ones that lacked any foreign handwriting on them. Jiraiya scratched his head trying to make sense out of what was lying before him. These were highly classified documents only made available to Konoha ninja working within the system and the ANBU Black Ops. Not even on B-Rank missions like this were clients allowed to have these.

"Hm…" The princess was slowly waking up.

Pulling his fishnet undershirt on, Jiraiya stuffed the manila folder back underneath a stack of papers that was on the coffee table. He grabbed his robe trying to concoct an easy way of escaping. Quickly he placed one hand in front of his face focusing his chakra in a hurry.

The princess sat up only to find a small cloud of smoke in the middle of her tent.

The four man team walked behind the moving royal carriage. Their alignment was the same as the day before; Jiraiya was on the edge with Orochimaru followed by Tsunade who was walking next to Sarutobi-sensei. The heat seemed less bothersome now that they were wandering through a thick forest. Only the chatter between Orochimaru and Jiraiya could be heard besides the clatter of the carriage slowly rolling in front of them.

From what Tsunade could hear Jiraiya was going on about what happens when you give a squirrel a smoke bomb. His arms were waving wildly while he was telling the tale with much detail, even Orochimaru looked engrossed by the story giving him all the attention he had. When he would take a pause they would both laugh making Tsunade smile.

Jiraiya paused for a moment looking over at Tsunade; Orochimaru copied him a few seconds later. They caught her staring at them. Now what was she supposed to do? She quickly stuck her tongue out at them then looked away. They both shrugged returning back to Jiraiya's story.

Her gaze fell on her shoes. They were simple, blue, useful, and comfortable. Boy, she really had it bad if the simple glance from him made her ponder her standard issue shoes. Her hand ran up and down her arm in thought. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Sarutobi-sensei looking directly ahead not paying attention to the antics of their teammates. Maybe she could ask him about it. He did once tell them that they could tell him anything. It was safe since Orochimaru was engrossed in a squirrel story.

"Sensei," she mumbled still rubbing her arm with one her hands. Slowly her gaze went from the ground to her teacher's face. Her face was uncertain a little afraid to ask him.

His eyes kept looking ahead, although she knew very well he could see her out of the corner of his eye and was paying full attention. "Hm?"

"How did you know… that you were in love?"

The question came out awkward and she could feel the heat rising to her face. Hopefully if anyone was looking at her they would think that she was overheated. If there was someone who would know about that, it would be Sarutobi-sensei since he was married.

Her words seemed to take him off guard. His serious facial expression now derailed and looking a little shocked. Finally he realized that he had a fully loaded teenage girl on his hands. This was something he had been dreading since the teams were announced. He looked at a blushing Tsunade then over at a laughing Jiraiya. _I see… _he thought forming a small smile.

"It's not a definite thing if that's what you're expecting. This isn't like a test at the Academy with only one correct answer. Your mind isn't a key player and you can't rely on it in that type of scenario. When it happens, you'll know and it shouldn't be ignored."

"Oh… thank you, sensei."

That wasn't the answer she was looking for. She wanted a definite way of knowing when a person was in love. Silently she was cursing herself and Sarutobi-sensei for giving her a completely useless response.

"So who's the lucky boy?" Sarutobi-sensei was looking directly at her only looking away for a short second towards Jiraiya with a smirk.

What was he getting at? Could he possibly already know? She wouldn't put it past him since he was one of the best ninja Konoha had to offer. Just by looking at people he could already figure out so much about them. His eyes and sharp mind were a dangerous combination. She wouldn't be surprised if she knew everything there is to know about her and her teammates.

A good lie wouldn't give it away. "Oh, well there's this ANBU captain… I thought he was pretty handsome. I think is name is Juno or something to that effect."

There was an awkward silence. Sarutobi-sensei knew every ANBU Black Op they had and there was no one who went by that name. A student outsmarting a teacher was something that rarely happened. They just kept walking forward while Jiraiya and Orochimaru kept talking.

A kunai flew by Tsunade's face skimming her delicate cheek and slicing off a lock of her golden hair. The hair fluttered down to the ground weightlessly alongside a few drops of blood that was now streaming down her face in a small trail. It happened so quickly leaving Tsunade wide-eyed and speechless feeling the nerves located in her cheek screaming in agony. Her eyes narrowed in pain not being able to yell out. Shinobi can never show a weakness like that.

It only skinned her face, but that was just the beginning of something worse to come.

After the kunai flew by everything slowed down. Jiraiya seemed angry removing many shuriken from his pouch and swiftly thrusting them into all directions around them. Orochimaru vanished in a flash appearing on top of the carriage determined to protect the princess and keep an eye out for the enemy above ground. Sarutobi-sensei moved in front of Tsunade building up his chakra levels for battle. While Tsunade gritted her teeth feeling the blood still flowing out of her body and drizzling down her face.

The kunai was a warning.

Everything sped up again when there was a rustling in the bushes. It was silent but it was a loud silence filled with anticipation. Jiraiya's silver eyes scanned the area. First he looked above, then behind, to the left, to the right, and below. There was another rustle in the bushes; the enemy was coming for them.

Kunai flooded the air around them in frenzy. Jiraiya flipped backwards landing safely on the trunk of the tree. The enemy kunai were embedded in the tree trunk below him. His eyes widened in surprise at what was attatched to them.

"They're tags! They're tags, Sarutobi-sensei," he yelled looking frantically for his teammates in the storm of rigged kunai.

The ground below them was covered; all had been masterfully dodged by the team. Tsunade panted looking over at Sarutobi-sensei. It was only a matter of seconds before they would all be caught in an explosion.

"Orochimaru," Sarutobi-sensei commanded knowing his student would understand why he was calling his name.

Orochimaru nodded in his direction, closing his eyes to focus his chakra, then moving his hands at rapid speed forming hand signs. "Striking Shadow Snakes!"

As soon as those words were uttered by Orochimaru snakes streamed from his arm curling below him at breakneck speed. Slithering and twirling, they entered Princess Aya's carriage breaking through the wooden exterior like it was tissue paper. The snakes wrapped tightly around the vulnerable princess and her plump servant pulling them roughly out of their carriage then flinging them behind Sarutobi-sensei.

Orochimaru hopped calmly off of the carriage, the snakes receding back into his body, landing behind Jiraiya who was now forming his own quick hand signs. There was only a matter of milliseconds left before the explosion. Out of the corner of his eye, Orochimaru could see Sarutobi-sensei forming hand seals as well.

They both stopped in unison.

"Mud Wall Jutsu!"

"Needle Guardian!"

The tags exploded creating a huge erupting ball of fire that smoldered everything in its path. Thick smoke was covering the forest that now had a big hole located in the middle of it. Trees were gone, the carriage was ash, and the ground was black. Everything within a two mile radius was dust.

The smoked and dust cleared revealing two large masses in the now barren clearing. A big, tuft of what appeared to hard as rock white hair was located fifty feet away from a huge, stale mud wall. The wall crumbled revealing Sarutobi-sensei, Tsunade, Princess Aya, and her servant all covered in dirt. The white tuft of hair opened slowly showing a calm Orochimaru and a grinning Jiraiya.

Jiraiya's bushy, white hair receded back into its normal messy state, it was amazing how something as soft and delicate as hair could become as strong as stone turning into a powerful shield when molded together with chakra. Orochimaru's eyes rolled when Jiraiya gave him a huge pat on the back. It almost knocked the frail, pale boy over.

Impulse would've told Tsunade to rush over to her teammates to see if they were wounded but the serious look on Sarutobi-sensei's face told her otherwise. His eyes were darting around the clearing ready to initiate his Mud Wall Jutsu again. There was always someone there to protect her, to keep her from the grasps of death. It appeared that Orochimaru and Jiraiya were completely capable of protecting each other. They were the strongest duo in Konoha. Orochimaru had the clever mind while Jiraiya had the brute strength. Team Sarutobi was pretty balanced when they factored in Sarutobi-sensei's wisdom and skill brought in by his experience alongside Tsunade's above average medical skills.

The two boys kept their position eagerly waiting for their teacher to give them the clear to join them.

Tsunade licked her lips. There was a taste of blood that tainted them and brought her hand to her cheek. By running her fingers over it she could detect that the wound had clotted and wasn't too deep, though she was pretty sure one side of her face was caked in dry blood. Those suckers got her good.

"Ugh," a delicate voice moaned from beside Tsunade.

_Oh no! The princess_, she thought whipping around to see Princess Aya still lying on the ground. Her face was filled with pain while she clutched her left arm and her right hip. When Orochimaru whipped her around with his Striking Shadow Snakes, he must have not put her down gently. Just by looking at the position the princess was in, she could see that her left arm and right hip were fractured.

On the other hand, her servant was unharmed looking terrified at what happened only a few minutes ago.

"Don't move!" Tsunade was very commanding when it came to her medical jutsu, she wouldn't allow any funny business from her patients. They would have to suck it up or die. It was her policy.

Visible blue chakra clouded her hands. Precise chakra control was what she needed to perform her Healing Hands Technique. Sometimes she could even use her medical jutsu in combat against others. Her hands floated over Aya's right hip, feeling the bone resetting and the chakra creating new bone tissue then repairing all the damaged muscles around it. Aya was clenching her teeth in the pain of feeling her nerves being tampered with then realigned.

Sarutobi-sensei gave the signal that it was okay for them to regroup.

"Hey! Let's race back," Jiraiya suggest still grinning in Orochimaru's direction.

"Um… I don't know-" Orochimaru didn't even get a chance to finish his statement instead he was looking at the already running back of his teammate.

A sigh escaped him as he took off running. Ever since they had met at the Academy they had to outdo each other in everything. Age didn't play a key part in the fact that Jiraiya would always love competition against Orochimaru. That sort of thing never tore their relationship apart; instead it only seemed to make it stronger.

It was only a matter of seconds before he had passed Jiraiya, leaving him in the dust. A slender body such as Orochimaru's was built for speed but that never seemed to put a damper on his teammate's spirits. He took his place standing next to, Tsunade, who was now working on healing Princess Aya's arm, he watched as his teammate kept running forward not even slowing his pace. Determination no matter what the circumstances fueled Jiraiya.

Too bad it all went up in smoke.

The footsteps coming from Jiraiya's direction were silenced by a sudden explosion. _A tag? Jiraiya must'v_e..._ tripped it_… Sarutobi-sensei stared blankly at the sudden flare in the empty clearing. His hands had tried to create hand signs for a substitution jutsu but he ran out of time. Now his hands had fallen to his sides, limp.

The tainted wind whipped all around Tsunade. Eyes wide in terror and shock even with her back turned to the event a feeling ran throughout her body. Her stomach dropped.

Impulse was taking over as she quickly turned around facing the explosion with her eyes wide screaming, "Jiraiya!"

Her feet pushed off of the ground in an attempt to take off running towards him. In her mind she was the only person on the team who could stand a chance saving him. There had to be some medical jutsu that could help. Even with her mind going a mile a minute nothing came up. Sarutobi-sensei stopped her, grabbed her by the waist, holding her in mid-air to keep her still.

"Orochimaru," she cried feeling emotion took over, not obeying the way of a shinobi, "Go! Help him! He is your best friend, isn't he?"

"Don't," Sarutobi-sensei commanded still holding Tsunade back by the waist. "There could be more tags. Stay calm."

Stay calm? How was it possible in this type of situation to stay calm? No matter how many times you received specialized training for these types of events, they didn't hold a candle to the real deal. Even the normally tranquil expression on Orochimaru's face seemed faded overcome with shock. Their sensei seemed like the only person unchanged, but they knew it was all an act. In his day he had seen much worse but on the inside the loss of a student had to be crippling.

The smoke was clearing. The three-man squad stood there, frozen in place awaiting the fate of their friend. Flames were still flickering around a bump in the ground. Tears were now on the rims of Tsunade's eyes at the realization that bump was probably the charred remains of her teammate. Slowly the grip Sarutobi-sensei had on her waist disappeared at the site of the unmoving bump. It was black and still reflecting the explosion with fire still dancing around its outline.

When her feet reached the ground, Tsunade took off running not even thinking or caring about the possible danger of other untapped tags around her. If Orochimaru and Sarutobi-sensei were yelling for her there wasn't a chance she could hear them now. Everything was blocked out except for the charred mass in front of her. She didn't even know if she was crying.

She fell to her knees when she reached the huddled amount of black, mass in front of her. Her hands were moving frantically to extinguish the small flames still burning faintly. Shaking with tears running down her cheeks she noticed all she could see was the burnt robe that Jiraiya so frequently wore. It was probably his last attempt to save himself by shielding his body with his robe. She removed the robe with one swift motion looking down at what was secured underneath.

"Shoes, that's all that's left of him, his ninja shoes," she choked still having a fierce stream of tears flowing down her cheeks.

A cough echoed nearby while she sat there still crying over the loss of her friend. "Man, I didn't know you cared so much."

The tone was obnoxious, familiar, mocking. Tsunade turned her head slowly to see a smirking Jiraiya standing two feet away from her. At first she blinked feeling that this was somehow a mirage, a trick of the light, a genjutsu, whatever it was, it couldn't have been real. Upon her second stare she saw him covered from head to toe in soot without his shoes and his robe.

"J-Jiraiya?!" A smile came across his face when she sputtered out his name. "How? Why? You bastard! I'm going to kill you!"

Her speed was amazing all he did was blink and Jiraiya was being held by his fishnet collar with Tsunade shaking him furiously.

"Now, now, you two." Sarutobi-sensei interjected grabbing Jiraiya by the waist and carrying him away from Tsunade who followed obediently and begrudgingly back to where Orochimaru was standing with the princess.

The look on Orochimaru's face seemed relieved. "How?"

"Replacement jutsu," Jiraiya answered as a matter-of-a-factly. "I removed my robe and shoes to use them as the decoys."

Tsunade rubbed her eyes trying to make it seem like she hadn't been crying at all. What Jiraiya did had stunned her. That sort of maneuver in that dire of situation took immense skill, chakra control, and high intelligence. Intelligence was something she never gave Jiraiya credit for having. Her eyes were wandering landing on Sarutobi-sensei who looked extremely proud of his pupil. Now she had gone and worried for nothing. This shinobi way of life was not the place where her emotions belonged. It made her feel weak and helpless.

"Take me to a hotel!" Princess Aya's shrill and demanding voice disrupted her train of thought.

Slowly she turned around to see Aya sitting upright looking very displeased with her arms crossed. "What…?"

"I said take me to a hotel! My carriage was ruined, you hear me? Ruined! I'm not sleeping outside especially with these wannabe ninja trying to kill me! I want a hotel… _now_."

"Very well, Princess," Sarutobi-sensei stated trying to keep peace with all the younger members of their party.

Once again they were walking this time with Princess Aya and her servant in the middle of their group. The rogue ninja either vanished after the barrage of kunai or had done a suicide mission in an attempt to wipe them out. Most of the walk, Tsunade's eyes were glued to the ground before her while Jiraiya was engaged in a lively conversation with Orochimaru again. For a brief moment her eyes wandered meeting with Jiraiya's silver eyes. They both quickly looked away. Her cheek was cut up while he was walking barefoot only wearing his pants and fishnet undershirt.

* * *

Here's chapter six in all its exciting and loveable glory. A sudden burst of inspiration fueled the creation of this chapter and will now fuel the creation of the next one. Many are probably wondering what happened to Jiraiya's perverted nature, don't worry, I'm getting to that in time. That's coming soon. 

There wasn't too much Tsunade action but there will be soon. I promise. Oh yeah, I had to look up the jutsu names online and I found them in English so they stayed that way. In all sincerity I do watch the show in both English and Japanese. I downloaded Shippuuden onto my computer alongside the Rescue Sasuke Arc and other various episodes, but I also sort of follow the American version watching it everytime it appears on TV. I don't memorize the name of the jutsu in either language. Except for like the basic ones that Naruto and Sasuke, or other characters utter every three seconds.

The only jutsu I know in its original state is _Katon! Goukakyuu no Jutsu! _which is Sasuke's fireball jutsu. Why? Well because episodes 129 to 134 are my favorites, and Sasuke, alongside Ino, is my favorite character.

Anywho this is the longest chapter yet and I think my favorite so far. Thanks to everyone who reads and reviews. Hopefully you'll all continue to read, and review.

That's all! Until next time. :D!

* * *


	7. Silly Games

**DISCLAIMER**: Naruto is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto. He owns and created these characters, woo!

**Chapter Seven**: Silly Games

The hotel that they had acquired had quite a lavish bathhouse. By the outward appearance Jiraiya could've sworn that his sensei's lip was wiggling with the thought of how much of his hard earned money would be tossed away on a bratty princess's need for comfort. The inside appearance only confirmed his suspicions. Even with the cost of a B-Rank mission, a jonin's salary probably wouldn't amount to one night's stay in the joint without maybe skipping out on a month's rent. Looks like Sarutobi-sensei's wife would be calling a cardboard box home for thirty-one days. Thankfully Aya's pudgy assistant informed the quartet they wouldn't have to pay a cent. Ah the perks of carrying around the wealthy.

Dirt was clouding the warm, clear water on the boy's side of the vast bathhouse. Orochimaru's eyes narrowed looking at his soot covered teammate. Wrinkling his white nose he couldn't comprehend Jiraiya's objection to rinsing off all the soot, grime, blood, and other particles he had gained in battle before coming into the relaxing bath. There was also the matter of him trying not to stare at his well endowed partner who was now fully submerged beneath the clouding surface.

In a frenzy of white hair the sage resurfaced letting out a breath of relaxation and ease. His silver eyes immediately darting towards what looked like a flustered Orochimaru. It may have been the heat in the bathhouse, but he could've sworn the boy had a red tint to his pale cheeks. Not like it mattered that was the effect the humidity mixed with the unusual hot water had on many. Unlike himself, the raven-haired boy probably wasn't a seasoned veteran when it came to bathhouses.

Stretching a brazen grin crossed his face realizing what the wall concealed behind it. "Want to play a game?"

A game? Orochimaru never thought anything good would come from the word 'game' being mentioned in a bathhouse. Right now he was more focused on keeping his eyes above the water while making sure he kept his composure. Oh why did Sarutobi-sensei have to be on guard duty outside? Perhaps a game would make him feel more at ease in this extremely awkward situation. Bathing with Tsunade would be more comfortable then this, and the fact he hadn't even told his so-called 'best friend' was eating him a little on the inside. Secrets were hard to keep, even if he was slightly more superior to his friend.

The lack of response from Orochimaru only seemed to make the white-haired sage more determined to get him involved in the little game. Water was splashing around him; he closed his eyes tightly hoping that if he pretended to be sleeping that would make Jiraiya lose interest. No such luck. Something pressed against his body causing him to only open one eye with detached emotion. A smiling Jiraiya had placed his arm around him, grinning from ear-to-ear in a ploy to make him play the stupid game, whatever it was.

An annoyed expression crossed his face, but on the inside he was fighting the urge to look down. Showing emotion would be weak and careless of him. Jiraiya gave him a chum-like squeeze with the one arm wrapped around him. Any moment he was expecting his teammate to burst out with puppy-dog eyes alongside pouting lips.

"Fine," he grumbled reluctantly, shrugging his overly zealous teammate off his shoulder.

Wavy, flaxen hair fell to Tsunade's shoulders upon removing her hair-tie in the bathhouse. The water seemed to be exactly the right temperature for this sort of activity. Beside her sat a very pouty Princess Aya, her arm was supposed to be in a carefully woven sling, but had been removed against Tsunade's orders before entering the bathhouse. What a drag that she was the one who was stuck with Aya while her teammates were probably enjoying themselves on the other side of the wall. Being a kunoichi on an all-boy's team sucked. There was nothing for them to talk about since they both lived completely different lives.

Her golden eyes wandered sticking directly on Aya's endowments prominently displayed before her. Genetics seemed to be dooming her to a life sentence with the nickname of 'Flat-Chesty' while Aya, three years her junior, was following in the path of 'Jugs'. Sensing Tsunade's jealous gaze, Aya's piercing blue eyes shot open giving off a deliciously wicked stare alongside a smirk. Now that she was caught the kunoichi averted her eyes safely to the corner of the bathhouse with her cheeks glowing crimson.

"That Jiraiya's something." The statement came out of the blue, instantly capturing her attention towards the princess.

"Excuse me," she inquired trying to be as civil towards their client as possible.

A breath of pure delight left Aya now lifting up her slender leg to rub herbal soap over her fair skin. "I mean, if I was not plagued with this marriage I would have to pinch him from you."

Nervous laughter echoed from Tsunade's lips, now the crimson glow on her cheeks was becoming rash-like spreading all over her tan body. Had she given off the radiance of being the one who Jiraiya was tied down to? That was impossible; the princess had never seen them together besides when they first met at the gates. Anyways that idiot wasn't good enough for her. Unlike some people she had standards, but that one night she could've sworn a different side had come out. A tingling ran through her forehead where his lips had touched her bare skin for a mere few seconds.

"Me and that idiot? Don't be silly. He doesn't know the first thing about pleasing women instead all he cares about is jutsu over romance."

"I beg to differ. The boy is quite fluent in how to please women." The words flowed from Aya's pink lips like she was purring them.

It left Tsunade befuddled sitting in the steaming bath. Swallowing hard, she forced a smile to her face only to get a wink as a response from Aya. Envy was stewing beneath the surface feeling not up to the challenge of a beauty like this fair-skinned princess.

The fact anyone could be remotely attracted to her teammate was beyond her comprehension. Perhaps it was because she had known Jiraiya since they were young, running around the streets of Konoha playing ninja. That was back when boys were going through a cootie epidemic making them untouchable. When puberty hit while they were Team Sarutobi, Jiraiya seemed to blossom into a striking ninja leaving Tsunade lagging behind still flat-chested with frizzy blonde hair. Hostility sprang when girls began to notice the oblivious white-haired sage. Harsh words began flying and a competition was born where she was determined to be as strong as the boy who never seemed to take anything seriously.

A sigh escaped her, was this an intervention of sorts? To make her realize that something had been there all along but they were both too obstinate and self-absorbed to take notice. Names of short relationships came to mind. The longest either of them had lasted in the game of love was a week.

Matsuri was a kunoichi Jiraiya had claimed to 'date'. There wasn't too much dating instead it was them only saying 'hello' to each other a couple of times, her following around with affectionate eyes while he focused on combat, and they hugged, once. Eventually she got annoyed when she realized Jiraiya exchanged more words on an hourly basis with Tsunade then he did with her during an entire week. A messy break-up ensued ending with the girl running away in tears while Jiraiya shrugged not fully understanding what her deal was.

Okay, so she hadn't exactly helped when it came to Jiraiya's love life. Secretly she would pop up at the training grounds when he was training claiming she could throw more shuriken at target with bulls-eyes than he could. Matsuri couldn't compete with their rivalry.

Even if she didn't dabble in Jiraiya's love life, allowing him to drool over whoever he wanted like the dog he was, she did take a small amount of pride in knowing that no one had taken his virginity. That pride lasted up until a few moments ago. Oblivious, slightly innocent Jiraiya couldn't have possibly gotten his act together for that. At seventeen he was an oddball, having the sex drive of an ant, only caring about his progression in the world of shinobi. Also the fact that Sarutobi-sensei gave them 'the talk' didn't make them more hormonal either.

"Is that so?" Cocking an eyebrow, Tsunade was trying her best to not get up and punch the overly catty princess before her.

Princess Aya gave a very satisfied smile.

"This is a wretched game, Jiraiya."

The two boys were pressed against the wooden wall diving the men's and women's bathhouses; nude. While Jiraiya was scanning the wall looking for the perfect place Orochimaru stood there feeling more uncomfortable then he did when he was in the bath. The game was stupid, juvenile, and something that Jiraiya took obvious pleasure in doing. How did he ever learn about this game in the first place? It's not something they had ever played while they were studying at the Academy, that's for sure. Droplets of water from Orochimaru's hair were dripping onto the floor as a chill ran through his body. Raising his slender arms up to cover his bare body he watched his teammate still studying the wall carefully.

"What I would give to be a Hyuuga. Their Byakugan would be very useful right now, don't you think?"

Jiraiya with Byakugan, what a scary thought; Orochimaru shuddered at the thought. Finally the bushy-haired boy discovered what he was looking for all along. Placing his hands together, he focused his chakra to the soles of his feet confidently walking up the wall to the top where there was an opening between the men's and women's bathhouses. At first Orochimaru stood his ground, watching his friend peering over the small opening into the next room. There was no way in hell, he was going up there to peep at one of his teammates and the girl they were escorting bathing.

"Would you hurry up," Jiraiya almost whined the statement feeling that somehow he couldn't allow the pale-boy to miss a perfect opportunity.

What sounded like a grumble came from a reluctant Orochimaru before he finally complied, scaling the wall before him. There wasn't much to see, it seemed like a standard bunch of naked girls. Obviously Jiraiya seemed to be overjoyed, but he wasn't too sure it was for the reasons most people played this 'game'.

An exasperated sigh came from Orochimaru's direction causing Jiraiya to look at him peculiarly. There was something lingering on the tip of his teammate's elongated tongue. "Who taught you this ludicrous game?"

"Sarutobi-sensei!" That was an expected answer. "The main goal is to see how long we can, well he calls it 'observe', but it's more of a peep at the girls before we get caught."

So their sensei was a closeted pervert dragging an unknowing and impressionable young shinobi into his sick and twisted world. Wonder what his wife thought of this little game he made up. Once again, Jiraiya was ready to speak.

"He says that if I can conceal myself in a place like the bathhouse for long periods of time then my camouflage skills will be exceptional."

Apparently Sarutobi-sensei knew how to BS his way through any situation. In the back of his mind, Orochimaru could already imagine the scene when they get caught by the Konoha police force. Casually he would explain that he was teaching a young student how to conceal themselves well enough for the already on guard ladies in the bathhouse not to sense their presence. No wonder Sarutobi was one of the best ninja in their village.

Both of them hung onto the edge of the wall in silence; it was apart of the game. Periodically Orochimaru's gaze would dwindle on his teammate who was taking it a little too seriously. How dense can one person be?

_Oh no_, he thought pulling his head below the edge of the open space. Princess Aya had been looking up in his direction. Unfortunately Jiraiya didn't even notice still probably looking at Tsunade shamelessly, even if he would never own up to it. If Tsunade caught them 'observing' then it would be curtains. Carefully he began tugging on his troublesome teammate's foot alerting him to come down before it was too late. Rolling his eyes Jiraiya ignored him probably feeling the need to still prove himself as better at the game.

Ugh, how annoying his overly determined this idiot was.

"Hello there, Jiraiya," a composed voice echoed through the woman's bathhouse.

Defeated, it had only been at least a half hour. Jiraiya watched feeling disappointed as the princess pushed a delicate tress of her fair hair behind one ear. "You have already seen enough of me, no?"

Vacantly Tsunade stared at Princess Aya wondering who she was talking to. There was no way that Jiraiya could've been spying on them. Wasn't there a wall in between them? Well she might as well see what Aya thought was to be her teammate. Most likely she was just playing a joke to ruffle her feathers.

"What the hell are you doing?" That was one of the first times Jiraiya had actually seen Tsunade move that fast. A towel was haphazardly wrapped around her body when she was hurling those words in his direction.

"Practicing," he answered simply still grinning from ear to ear while below him Orochimaru was flippantly banging his head against the wall.

The rest of the night was spent in separate rooms of the hotel. A room was shared between the four boys while the two girls had their own across the hallway. Only a few hours ago, Jiraiya had seen his female comrade in the buff but hadn't thought much of it at the time. Now it was becoming a little perplexing. To save him from the well-known 'Wrath of Tsunade' his best buddy pulled him off of the wall then dragging him to safety where they changed, ever since then he hasn't had any contact with her. The sight of Aya's body didn't gain the same reaction that Tsunade's did; he felt a little embaressed like he shouldn't have even seen it in the first place.

Sleeping wasn't an option when his normally serene mind was troubled.

Sheets rustled in the bed next to him where Orochimaru was nestled. Big, brown eyes were now gazing at him through the darkness. Everytime there was something bothering him, Orochimaru always seemed to sense it then giving his two-cents. Since Sarutobi-sensei was such a light sleeper, they would have to keep it below a whisper.

"If you are so troubled by Tsunade-hime, then perhaps you should discuss it with her."

That wasn't an option for Jiraiya, in his mind he should just leave it be. "What troubles me is the fact you still call her 'Tsunade-hime' from time to time."

"It's hard to overlook the known fact that she's the granddaughter of the First Hokage. Don't try to evade the subject at hand," Orochimaru paused shifting slightly beneath the sheets. "Just do it."

The ending words were harsh like Orochimaru was commanding him to go and apologize. Whatever, he never apologized and there was nothing for him to apologize about. The silence was domineering. Even though the raven-haired boy's eyes were closed in an attempt to slumber, Jiraiya felt like he was still staring at him. The scattered rhythm of his breathing gave away that he was still awake and waiting for Jiraiya to do or say something.

"Humph," Jiraiya pushed the covers off of his body exposing the fact he was only wearing boxers to bed. With his arms folded behind the back of his head, he casually strolled outside of the bedroom giving an effortless, "I'm going for a walk."

The wooden door to Tsunade's room slid open swiftly but quietly, in an abortive attempt to not awaken anyone. Brushing it off, she snuggled deep into her pillow believing that it was probably Aya going for a visit to the bathroom or something. Footsteps echoed softly throughout the room stopping at foot of her bed. Since her bed was by the window, maybe Aya was gazing at the stars. Princesses tended to be weird like that. The bed sunk at the bottom, shaking as something moved its way slowly to where her upperbody was.

Okay… was the princess trying to kill her?

Now her guard was fully up as she still struggled to create the illusion of slumber. Moments passed and nothing changed, the person in question was still lingering on the side of her like they were struggling with a difficult decision. The something began shaking her slightly. It felt like she was a mother and a child was entering her room to tell her that they had a bad dream. Letting out a downcast moan, her golden eyes opened slightly to see a bushy-haired shadow looming over her.

"Wanna go get a drink?" Ugh, it was Jiraiya looking down at her with what seemed like anxious eyes.

"We're seventeen," she groused pulling a nearby pillow over her face.

What sounded like a sigh came from his direction. "That didn't seem to matter at the Christmas par-…"

A harsh hand clasped over his mind from the overly aggressive girl, now disturbed from his simple statement. "Fine, whatever."

The drinking type was something Tsunade would've never pegged Jiraiya as, but there they were sitting at a bar in an awkward silence. On the way to the bar they walked in silence both taking in the unfamiliar sights of the small town they had randomly entered. Where they first stopped was what they thought was a bar. It gave off the illusion of a bar but they probably should've gotten a hint that it wasn't since the windows were tinted. Girls dancing everywhere in skimpy outfits meant they stumbled somewhere unwanted that Tsunade had to practically drag her teammate out of. Curiosity was what was telling him to stay and watch.

Both sat at the counter watching the hustle and bustle of the staff. The streets behind them were still lively with late-night costumers hopping from shops, bars, and clubs. It was late and they had snuck out of the hotel in their pajamas, well Jiraiya was wearing his boxers while Tsunade was at least wearing a robe. In the back of her mind, she was cursing herself for not forcing him to change fully before they went out. Why did she even consent to this?

A slender brunette hopped to the counter eyeing them in a way that she wanted their orders.

An arm had now found its way around Tsunade's shoulder, the look on her face probably read bothered, but Jiraiya seemed to just go on pressing her slightly against his body while saying, "Two drinks for me and my woman!"

Somehow her elbow magically jabbed its way into Jiraiya's rib-cage after the waitress had tattled off. Feeling accomplished, she beamed when he hit the ground with a thump now clutching his chest in agony.

"I was t-t-trying to make ourselves look older," he sputtered still clutching his rib-cage when he took his seat back on the stool next to her. "Man, you're extremely bitchy sometimes."

His elbow made a harsh noise when he plopped it against the counter feeling Tsunade's eyes full of hate glaring at him. Maybe he had picked the wrong choice of words. Something in the pit of his stomach was agreeing.

"I wouldn't be so bitchy if you weren't trying to freaking sneak a peak at me and the person we're escorting in the bathhouse. Do you know how pathetic that was? You're nothing but an immature, embarrassment to the entire village."

Voices were rising. The words were become harsh, cutting thick into his ego. Now he was feeling anger boiling up inside of him.

"Sorry, if I embarrass you, princess. If you think so little of me then why did you agree to come here?"

"Because you asked." The words flowed from Tsunade's mouth with no doubt in them, coming purely on a whim.

Once again, silence. Both staring at each other with scowls and narrowed eyes. No one was going to move any muscle. Now the anger was vanishing, Jiraiya felt slightly stupid for even asking and Tsunade feeling foolish for saying he was an embarrassment. Sometimes he just drove her crazy. With a pout on his face, Jiraiya looked away leaving her still staring at him now baffled.

"Tsunade…" Jiraiya was now meekly turning back to her, feeling Orochimaru's words pounding in the back of his mind. Spill it, now is the perfect time even if she's so difficult.

Receptively she waited feeling a lingering amount of dread. The response he was about to give could either be positive or negative. Why, oh why, did she have to open her big mouth? Could teammates really be something more? Right now she couldn't really go on the way they were now with an unspoken animosity running between them. She did make a complete idiot of herself during their last battle when she believed he had been blown to smithereens.

Slowly and slightly he leaned forward as if he was asking permission to breathe the same air. It was too be expected since she had punched him one too many times for being in her bubble. Her response was leaning forward a little. Right now everything seemed to be building up.

Two small glasses were slammed down on the counter in front of them catching them off guard. Jiraiya spun fretfully in the stool trying to regain his composure with a grin while Tsunade pouted slightly sending a glare towards the waitress behind the counter. Only one word was in her mind, _damn, damn, damn! _

It was such bad luck.

Tsunade's nerves were pinching, quite positive that she was sweating through her robe while Jiraiya seemed to be remaining collected at her side. For the fourth time she poured herself another drink swiftly pouring down her throat all it once. Wow, she had forgotten how great alcohol could be. With every second passing she could feel more relaxed.

In awe, Jiraiya watched her suck another couple of drinks back while his finger danced around the rim of his minute glass. Drinking and Tsunade were not a good combination. It was only the second time he had ever seen her drink but the first time was enough to learn that she was a lightweight but took too much pleasure in the tart drink. Wasn't she was one protesting only a couple hours ago about how they were too young? He was too focused on making sure she didn't keel over from alcohol poisoning. If a medical ninja was in need of help then they would have a trouble. Her cheeks began to glow crimson.

Well Orochimaru's advice sure was not helping. When he tried to tell her it only seemed to force her to the bottle.

A loud giggle came from Tsunade's direction. Glancing in her direction only seemed to endorse more giggling. It was like the Christmas Party all over again. That was the single most unconventional night of his life and when he learned to keep his nose out of her affairs. Adorning herself in a light blue grown, she entered immediately brushing by himself and Orochimaru to go chat up some boy by the name of Fudo. When Fudo offered her a drink, that's when she seemed to acquire a taste. Drink after drink made her more attatched to the hip of Fudo, who was notoriously known around the village as a womanizer. When Jiraiya tried to interject all he did was get snapped at by Tsunade so he retreated back to his corner with Orochimaru.

How the boy became a top ANBU Black Op would forever remain a mystery to him. Jiraiya knew how he would operate. First, offering a girl a drink, if it was nonalcoholic then he would spike it, to relax her. Second, he would charm her until she was too drunk to think. Third, he would offer to walk them home only he wouldn't take them home.

That night, Tsunade was his target and watching him leave with her only made Jiraiya clutch his glass until it broke in his hands. If Fudo's goal was accomplished that night was something he never learned. Drinking only seemed to make Tsunade more compliant with whatever anyone around her wanted her to do and apparently more flirtatious.

Closing time at the bar forced her to finally put down her coveted bottle. Side-by-side they walked, well Jiraiya walked while Tsunade staggered, down the street. It was getting a little too late for his liking and by the alignment of the moon in the sky he could tell morning would be coming soon. Sarutobi-sensei wouldn't be very pleased if he found out where they had gone. A wallop sounded behind him only to reveal Tsunade face-planted into the ground. Letting out a sigh, he eased her slowly onto his back thinking it would be the easiest and safest way to make it back to the hotel alive.

"I can w-walk ya know," her words were slowed together. Obviously her mouth wasn't up to speed with her mind since she was now joyfully resting against his back.

When Orochimaru had mentioned taking her out this wasn't what he had expected. A feeling of relief flushed through his body when he set her down softly on her bed. He expected for her to instantly fall to sleep but instead her big, golden eyes were looking up at him with tears brimming on the edges. Now what had he done?

"Please don't," even if her words were slurred by the amount of alcohol running through her bloodstream there was a certain amount of dread evident in her voice.

Before responding his eyes scanned the room seeing Aya sleeping soundly in the bed near the door. A mask was over her eyes and he imagined that she probably had earplugs in, that's usually how princess-types were. Finally curiosity spread over him, "Do what?"

Tsunade erupted into uncontrollable crying leaving Jiraiya all the more mystified. Crying girls was something he had never dealt with before. What was he supposed to do to make her stop?

"F-F-Fudo," she choked out not bothering to rub the tears from her cheeks or her now running nose. Somehow he reminded her of something that happened with that guy. "Just don't."

Somehow she is becoming more inarticulate as she sputters out her emotions. Mentioning the words 'that night' only seemed to make her burst into more uncontrollable crying. Slowly he extended his hand forward in an attempt to comfort her only to have her recoil seeming as terrified as ever. For a moment he looked down at his hand, piecing together a picture in his mind. There they were sitting in a hotel room, she was drunk, and he was male.

Gently he took a seat next to her on the edge of the bed, feeling like he could be punched at any moment. The fact that someone could ever take advantage of a girl like her was a little unusual. Her strength was mind-blowing and she was stubborn, but apparently when she was drunk it all vanished. Someone had noticed that about her, and his name was Fudo. Jiraiya's eyebrows furrowed at the thought of someone taking advantage of her like that. The memory was obviously a little painful for her, so he decided not to press her for information.

"I won't do that to you and I won't allow anyone to do ever do that to you again." It seemed like a heavy promise but he was pretty sure he could keep it. In the morning she probably wouldn't even remember this entire nightmare.

The response he got was unlike her. Sniffling she fell backward onto the bed, curling into a small ball tugging him down with her. This was the more flirtatious side of her being drunk. She was lying on her side now snuggling into his shoulder while he was lying flat on his back fighting his face flushing.

A yawn escaped her, now she was falling asleep. "_You're_ going to keep me safe?"

Apparently old Tsunade was returning since the words were snarky and doubtful, but still she seemed to really be curious. Simply he responded knowing she would only be conscious for a few more moments, "Yup."

Now Jiraiya was stuck in the hotel room opposite of his own with Princess Aya only a few feet away from him and Tsunade using him as a human pillow. What an odd turn of events. Orochimaru was probably half awake wondering where he had disappeared off to. Later he would slip out from underneath her returning to his room nonchalantly, but right now he was basing his situation off of a weird strain of luck.

* * *

End of Chapter Seven. It's progressing slowly.

This chapter shows the sprouting of Jiraiya's pervy side, while Tsunade can obviosuly hold her liquor now that she's older. The end was a little sweet, but whatever. They had to make some progress sooner or later. The 'Fudo' event will probably come up in later chapters even though I totally made it up. Jiraiya will somehow have to deal with that for her. Along those lines Tsunade will probably discuss Aya's obvious lie about sleeping together with Jiraiya. Right now, I made her a little meek about the situation.

Orochimaru will not end up having a crush on Jiraiya. It's not going to be SasuNaru-esk. He's just a curious little creature.

They're slowly coming into their adult personas which is what the story is about, how they became the way they are now.

Thank you to everyone who reads and reviews. It means a lot. Sorry for the slight wait, but I wanted "Strumming Along" to progress since this story will probably be finished before that one. My writing's gotten better, so hee hee.

Once again, thank you. :D!


	8. Our Last Dance

** DISCLAIMER**: Naruto is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto. Not me.

**Chapter Eight: **Our Last Dance

Upon their much anticipated arrival, a ball was to be had in honor of Princess Aya's entrance. The disinclined team was to attend the festivities.

A simple gesture that was supposed to enhance a relationship only seemed to stifle it. The usual chatter of Orochimaru and Jiraiya was silenced as the team walked along the dirt path surrounded by the dark trees, overshadowed by heavy clouds flowing overhead. Two heads were lowered; each for completely separate reasons. Embarrassment was Tsunade's ailment followed by the regrets of flooding memories and allowing herself to come off as weak. On the other end was Jiraiya, expecting a warm, indulgent hug in the morning from her that would finally kindle the flame inside of each of them.

When morning had finally arrived Jiraiya was up with the sun waiting anxiously outside her door. His hands were placed behind his back with his unkempt, white hair jutting into the open air around him. The expression he sported was optimistic in hopes of her remembering every word he had spoke and every move he had made. No one was taken advantage of, no bases were covered.

A miserable groan blared from the other side of the door flaring his interest in anticipation of seeing her reaction. A smile spread across his face as the door flew open to reveal Tsunade's amber eyes staring directly at him. No expression was being conveyed. Instead her face was like a blank canvas only showing emotionless eyes at him before lowering her head and pressing on around him. Maybe he was being too impractical and expecting instant gratification too soon. Well, there should've at least been something.

Like a dog with its tail between its legs, he retreated back into his hotel room not even acknowledging a now awakened Orochimaru. Being able to read his friend well, Orochimaru just stretched and didn't press him on the details. Sometimes he would be slightly vindictive, but he wouldn't ever feel that way towards the only real friend he had.

Sarutobi-sensei knew enough about teenagers to not get involved until directly questioned.

The palace seemed to perk Jiraiya up. There were lavish, soft pillows lobbed around everywhere. It seemed like a repeat of Princess Aya's tent; only ten times larger and vastly more expensive. The normally chatty Aya seemed speechless even before coming a hundred feet towards the palace. Fair skin seemed to become even more flushed when her blue eyes lay upon the steep walls of the palace. Her red lips seemed to quiver and a whimper floated into the air. Jitters were coming before the meeting of her 'Prince Charming'.

Everyone was split up. No one was allowed to see the Prince until the ball where he would be revealed. Eyes were not allowed to gaze upon Aya until she was in proper attire. Team Sarutobi's rooms were widely spread out making it hard to access each other; it was a blessing and a curse. Socializing was not on two of the shinobi's minds and their attitudes brought down the morale of the other two members.

Finally the night had come where they would be attending their first ball involving a B-Rank mission. Usually everyone would be jubilant and eager for the event. A reflection of Tsunade was looking directly back at her in the mirror wearing a pale, yellow dress to the event. Sarutobi-sensei had advised them to bring dressy clothes that would be easy to travel with and the sleek, yellow dress that came down to her knees was lighter than a traditional kimono.

The night before left her pensive, confused, and annoyed. No one on in the convoy seemed to be in a good state of mind when they entered the large, lavish doors into the palace. The hangover she was experiencing pounded on her forehead but came out fully as an anxiety headache after she took some medication for it. A weakness had been shown towards someone who she never wanted to see it.

The clock located on the dresser adjacent to her ticked meticulously before finally letting one loud boom. Such a seemingly simple sound meant her time of avoiding her teammates was over; the thought made her cringe and sigh looking at the door. Normally a look of confidence would be heavily placed on her face as she wandered into a ballroom or event. She was the First Hokage's granddaughter after all. All eyes would fall upon her and smiles would spread across even the most foreign of faces. Attention was something she had become accustomed to as a child since she was considered royalty by blood.

Tonight she wanted to slip into the ballroom without a word; feeling the wallpaper fall against her back as she attempted to blend in.

Avoidance was becoming her tactic as she walked at a slow pace down the long, elaborate hallway. Closed doors were all around her with only the loud silence and the beating of her conscious, and hangover, at the facade her head. On the way she was praying to not run into Jiraiya or Orochimaru. The simple, mauve eyes of Orochimaru would pierce into her ego alongside his look of indifference. While his expression would often convey nothing but unconcern, it was his eyes that held the key to his mind. Everytime she would do something to harm Jiraiya in some way a look of guard towards his bushy-white haired friend would wipe the smirk off of her face. Knowing Jiraiya, Orochimaru probably knew everything about what happened the previous night and his eyes would be as disarming as ever.

The sound of her heels clicked on the hard wood floor while her amber eyes were glued to the various doors that cluttered the hallway before her. Her delicate fingers fiddled with the bow on her pale, yellow dress. Right now she was looking for anything out of place and finally something caught her full on intention.

There before her was a door half open which obviously stood out from the unwelcoming closed doors all around her. A small light illuminated in the corner desk adjacent to a bed that matched the crimson décor. One foot was already set forth in the room as she pushed back the rest of the door. Silence, only the hum of the light made a slight dent in her ears. A kimono was tenderly placed on the edge of the silk sheets. It was something a ninja, or servant's, salary could never afford. The pungent scent of expensive lilacs flooded the air proving full well that this was indeed Princess Aya's room.

Chatter and footsteps arose from the hallway. A high pitched giggle obviously belonging the princess whose room she was standing in; the other voice conveyed a deep undertone that was a mystery. An amore stood proudly in the corner of the room providing a near perfect hiding spot. The only drawback seemed to be that it would've been a more comfortable fit if she was around one hundred pounds lighter and maybe the height of a five year old. Not to mention the entire wardrobe smelled of moth balls and curry.

Through the cracks Aya and her mystery guest made their entrance. Aya was scan dally-clad as per usual with a long, see-through robe over her frilly underclothes. For a small second her stomach fell at the Princess' appearance. Even she had to admit that the appearance the princess conveyed would be hard to resist when it came to sex. Her thoughts wandered back to Jiraiya and the conversation she had with Aya in the bathhouse. If there was someone who could seduce an idiot like Jiraiya it would've probably been her. Subtlety was something Jiraiya never understood and Aya never had to use.

Soft patting filled the room as Aya's bare feet glided across the wooden floor and ended as she fell onto a velvet chair near a vanity by the window. Immediately her fair hand reached for a brush and began painting her flawless skin white to match her kimono. All the man who followed her into the room did was watch concealed in the darkest corner of the room with his hands curled over his chest.

Tsunade felt herself fall into a false sense of security. If her presence was to be noticed it would've happened already. Her guard began to dwindle watching Aya dusting her cheeks with the white powder.

Bam! At the loud sound she jumped slightly in the wardrobe pushing one of the hooks deeper into her exposed back. Her eyes darted around the room to see the white make-up powder covering the wooden surface of the vanity. One spot was left bare where Aya's fist had suddenly come down.

"Don't stand there playing silent games with me," Aya's voice was cold, harsh, and demanding not hiding the anger sizzling in her throat.

The man didn't move an inch like he was used to Aya's rash behavior and sudden outbursts. Instead a small chuckle echoed from the back of his throat sending chills up Tsunade's spine. It was unnerving how cold the laughter sounded. A sound that shows happiness should never make someone feel as there are spiders dancing up their delicate back.

Aya huffed, not amused with the shadow-dancing man, her hand grabbed the make up brush and began furiously painting her cheeks, "You may laugh now, but you're on thin ice when it comes to proving your loyalty."

"Is that so?"

The voice was full of ice, concise and muffled so even the most-skilled ninja couldn't decipher the real pitch. Whoever this shinobi was, he was skilled in keeping his identity concealed within the shadows. Tension was radiating from Aya, making the air within the room thick enough to suffocate. Nevertheless the man was keeping himself composed.

Aya on the other hand was on the edge about to crack with how nonchalant he was being with whatever they were discussing. The make-up brush cracked in her delicate hand.

"Don't you dare patronize me with your detached words and attitude. You know full well that those Konoha amateur shinobi should be in a ditch somewhere not being able to draw breath anymore. Underestimation must have been your flaw this time around."

A disapproving grunt sounded from the corner sparking Aya's interest. Gracefully she rose from her stool near the vanity and pressed her body slightly against his with a luscious smirk. "Or perhaps you're not as skilled a shinobi as you brag that you are?"

"Don't be ridiculous. My mission was to dispose of them in a certain way and in the forest was only a test to rile them up. Now I have fully evaluated what their strong and weak points are. What about you? Maybe you're not as great a seductress as you proclaim you are."

Azure eyes narrowed into a glare and Aya's nose rustled before she sashayed back to the vanity. The normal poise she possessed was cracked by the cold words of the ninja stationed in the corner. The drawers of the vanity closed and opened angrily until the princess finally pulled out four manila folders and tossed them to the floor. They glided effortless along the wooden, floor boards until they came to a halt, opened and fanned out directly in the line of vision of the man.

"Don't be so fresh, darling. It's beginning to wear down my patience. The bushy-haired one needs more time before my charm will fully have its effect on him. Little does he know that he and his teammates are playing perfectly into their demise with an added bonus of war breaking out with the Rose Country and Konoha."

The shinobi in the corner half-shrugged in response, "If you say so."

"Just do your job and it all ends tonight." A sultry smile crossed Aya's rosy lips as she made her way towards the wardrobe.

Tsunade's eyes widened in panic of being discovered, she couldn't lose her composure now. It was time to remain calm and remember everything that she had learned. Her chest inflated before she exhaled to calm herself. In the back of her mind she envisioned something in the hallway beneficial to her escaped. The bare feet of the princess pressed on dangerously close. Chakra built up.

Aya opened her wardrobe and cocked an eyebrow at what was dangling before her. There on a hook was a long, pale yellow hair ribbon. The sultry smirk grew wider, "Seems a medical ninja has overhead our conversation."

In a flash the male shinobi appeared behind her, caressing the hair ribbon between his index finger and his thumb. Underneath the mask was a grin. "I know how to handle a pesky medical ninja."

On the other side of the door, Tsunade inhaled and exhaled at a rapid pace. Sweat from her hands was beginning to run through her thin, white gloves. One of her gloved hands reached to touch her half-ponytail only to not feel the silk ribbon she had placed there before. Tonight she would have to be on her guard since her gut and mind were pleading with her not to tell her teammates. If her ribbon was discovered then she was confident that she would be suspected.

The thought of someone having their ninja records made her stomach curl into a nervous knot. Someone must have to leaked their records, and it had to be someone on the inside. No matter who the client is, they could never get their hands on those files. Maybe their perfect princess was using that shadow shinobi as a mole.

The details didn't matter. Now she had the challenge of making it through the ball while maintaining her composure. This mission was beginning to become unbearable. When the thought of entering the ballroom to see Jiraiya crossed her mind, her stomach constricted tighter into a knot.

White radiated through the grand ballroom. The theme of the evening was white, making the room around them seem pure and bright. A huge ceremony was about to be had and the room was festooned with grand candelabras showcased on large wooden tables with white, silk tablecloths. Servants shattered around making sure the guests who had arrived were happy in their surroundings and the sound of music traveled through the air.

In the throng of people were Orochimaru and Jiraiya who had conveniently stationed themselves right next to the table full of drinks. Each had their long hair tied back with a black bow and wearing their most polished, dress clothes. Unfortunately, Jiraiya's had a stain right across the front when he spilled his drink at the sight of Tsunade exiting the party with Fudo. In dress clothes Orochimaru looked elegant and handsome while Jiraiya looked like he was uncomfortable and awkward.

Out of the corner of his onyx eyes, Orochimaru caught Tsunade making her entrance, attempting to blend in with the crowd. "My, my, Tsunade-hime has finally made her fashionably late entrance. Perhaps we should go greet her."

One of Jiraiya's hands halted Orochimaru in mid-step causing him to raise his eyebrows in confusion. "Still touchy are we? Very well, we'll wait for her to make her way over here."

Watching Tsunade make her way around the other side of the room was only exasperating Jiraiya's uncomfortable feeling. His silver eyes darted in every possible direction before landing on his feet. Behind his back his hands fidgeted with the sleeves of his jacket. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Orochimaru standing next to him with his chin held high and feel his elevated gaze.

Finally a reaction occurred.

"I am _not_ touchy. It's just that she looks very preoccupied and you knew just as well as I do that she can be very moody when her mind's frantic."

Maybe Jiraiya was just attempting to make futile attempts of avoiding her, but he was half correct. Tsunade's face was flushed, her hair was somewhat muddled, and her eyes were darting around the room frantically. Well that was until they made contact with his. Then they seemed to relax for a second before he was caught gawking and narrowed his eyes in displeasure of her gaze. With his arms crossed he harshly flipped his head to the side, pouting his lips to show his disgust.

Now it was her turn to make a move, he wasn't going to be the one who invoked the conversation anymore. The ball was in her court. Frankly he could find himself living without her for quite sometime; months, weeks, even years at a time without her speaking to him. Tsunade would have no affect on him.

"Tsunade-hime, you are looking quite radiant tonight," the sound of Orochimaru's tone pulled his attention to the girl standing right in front of him.

There stood Tsunade with her hands folded at her lap and her attention was directed towards Jiraiya. Silently he cursed himself for losing his edge when she made her appearance. Right now he was positive his mouth was slung open and his eyes were wide while giving her a once over. Crossing his mind over and over was the question how she could walk so fast. One moment she was on the other side of the room and the next, bam, she was standing in front of them.

"Wouldn't you agree, Jiraiya?"

Damn, Orochimaru. Damn him and all his children for asking him a question like that. A slight smile crossed the pale boy's lips when he looked down at Jiraiya. How was he supposed to answer that? Sweat began to form on his palms as he clenched his fists. Even sweat was starting to form at the hairline of his bushy, white hair. Regrets of growing his hair to such a long length were forming. Two pairs of eyes were waiting for his answer. So he stated the first compliment that came to mind.

"I guess your dress makes your flat-chest look at least a full size larger."

The vein on Tsunade's forehead began to throb. She was not amused. Maybe he had said the wrong thing. Maybe he shouldn't have said it with such confidence and a relaxed tone.

So he would try to salvage what was left of the compliment, "Uh… two, two sizes larger, I mean."

Even the polished demeanor of Orochimaru crumbled at his pitiful attempts to save himself. Muffled laughter sounded from the raven-haired boy's head that was currently buried in his hand. Jiraiya's shoulders tensed feeling the sweat began to form on his hairline. A nervous smile came to his face only causing Tsunade to roll her eyes then stomp away.

A few moments later Orochimaru removed his face from his palm and composed himself. Clearing his throat he wasted no time in critizing Jiraiya, "You've never had a serious girlfriend have you?"

Ignoring the comment, Jiraiya's eyes searched around the room before landing on the pale-yellow dress that belonged to his teammate. One of her gloved-hands was clutching a ladle and pouring red punch into a clear cup. Her painted-pink lips were moving in conversation with someone hidden behind her. All he could see was the top of the mystery person's head. Slowly she sipped the punch then moved to the side to reveal a boy. What? How dare she talk to another boy! The boy smiled slightly then saying something that Tsunade humbly agreed to. With that she was whisked away onto the dance floor leaving Jiraiya and the punch cup behind.

"That tramp! She's with another guy! Did you _see_ that! _Another guy_!"

Orochimaru sipped his punch before looking in the general direction of where Jiraiya's outburst was aimed at. "Yes, I see. And wow, his hand is around her waist, the fiend."

"I know," Jiraiya grumbled completely missing the evident sarcasm radiating from Orochimaru. "If she can dance with another guy then I'm allowed to dance with another girl."

"By all means, Jiraiya, please dance with some girl."

After a determined nod, Jiraiya scanned the room looking for any girl who could rile up some jealousy in Tsunade. There were so many girls but he wasn't sure which one he would chose for this sweet revenge. He found someone who seemed perfect and beamed before bounding away from Orochimaru towards the girl in the corner with her back turned to him. Clearing his throat he mentally prepped himself for this brave endeavor. It wasn't everyday that you purposely tried to make a teammate jealous. Blonds always seemed to make other girls wild with jealousy so he believed the girl before him was perfect.

Lightly he tapped her on the shoulder, "Excuse me. I was wondering if you would wish to dance."

The blond girl turned around slightly to reveal Aya smiling from ear to ear. "Of course Jiraiya, anything for the shinobi who escorted me all the way here, but don't step on my new shoes."

The unveiling of Aya left Jiraiya confused and staring at her with his finger still dangling in the air, she wasn't supposed to be out on the dance floor yet. Quickly he turned around only to have Orochimaru shrug at him across the room. Swallowing hard he held his own hand to have it be taken by a delicate hand. Somehow he could never win in any type of situation. It wouldn't be very good for the reputation of Konoha if he was caught dancing with the princess they were escorting to her arranged marriage. Still the determination he had to make his teammate envious was stopping his mind from thinking clearly.

Thoughts of her in the arms of another man flooded through his mind as he led Aya onto the dance floor.

Now came the hard part. The plan he had hatched in his mind only went up to the asking of the girl. Nowhere in his short plan had he believed he would be dancing. Dancing was not covered when you were trained as a shinobi. Maybe he could learn by watching the others around him. Apprehensively his hand wrapped around hers and his other hand curled around her waist. Another hard swallow followed by a quick glance into Aya's pale blue eyes and he began to guide her around the dance floor.

For the first song, Jiraiya counted that he almost stepped on Aya's feet seventy-six times, Aya smiled at him forty-eight times, and Tsunade giggled at one of lover-boy's jokes eleven times. A slow tune trailed behind the last song causing everyone to ease into a slow, intimate sway. Somehow he had danced himself only a few feet away from Tsunade and whoever she was dancing with. Her head was nestled happily on his shoulder while Aya's was nestled on Jiraiya's. All he could think of was how many drinks this guy must have given her to make Tsunade be so affectionate.

On the other side of the room, girls were swarming around Orochimaru but all he did was sip his punch and stare at the ceiling. Their team never felt so torn. Jiraiya never felt so confused. That's when Aya whispered something into his ear and his eyes widened.

Time seemed to slow. Now his team really was going to become torn. The music stopped. Harshly he pushed Aya to the hard wood dance floor. All she did was smirk at him from the ground; her blue eyes watching him turn around. Smoke clouded a spot in the middle of the dance floor. That spot used to house where Tsunade was dancing with that mystery-boy. Now there was nothing there.

Frenetically his wide, silver eyes darted around the room only to see his best friend pinned against the wall with a chained shuriken. Orochimaru's raven hair covered his face as he was slumped against the wallpaper with blood trickling down his suit, the wall, and the chains.

A sudden amount of weight slammed Jiraiya to the floor. His blank eyes stared at the ceiling only to have his stare obstructed by Princess Aya's face. The smirk was still imprinted there while she whispered the same words again, "What do you call a team without a medical ninja?"

This time she closed her whisper with her lips softly pressing up against his in a tender kiss. Everything went black.

* * *

Hello readers:D!

Thank you for being extremely patient when it came to the updating of this story. It's been almost two months since my last update and they have been very hectic. Writing this chapter was very difficult due to time and the fact my writing skills are being used for school-related writing. My creative juices are being used for other things.

Currently my life is ruled by cross country races, college application due dates, and my student agenda.

Onto the story. This may be one of my worst chapaters, in camparison to the chapters I've been writing lately it's short. Why was Jiraiya and his teammates taken down so easily? Well they were taken off guard when they least expected it and Jiraiya was in a state of shocker. Also he's now progressing into his pervy-persona.

It'll get good again, no worries. Once things slow down this story will be updated again. Alongside that, everyone who reads 'Strumming Along' that will be updated next.

Thank you to everyone who reads, alerts, faves, whatever. Reviews are always appreciated. :3 You all get cookies. -gives cookies-


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